Author: Bill Hall

Matthew 11:12
   Once again, if we see the kingdom of heaven as Christ himself, and those who are in Christ, the passage makes more sense. Many have surmised that this verse means you have to take the kingdom by force. They say that the disciples were violently zealous. This is just not consistent with he facts, and does not make good sense. Others say that the sinners of the day were handling it roughly. This again seems untenable. Jesus voluntarily associated with vile sinners and converted them by droves.
   So, the proper understand here seems to be that though Jesus had enjoyed many good responses to his message, it was not being well received by all. These violent ones, the Jewish leaders, would ultimately ‘take it by force’ and put him to death. There were also Zealots who wanted to see the kingdom come immediately, meaning that they wanted to be rid of Roman rule right away. These violent revolutionaries also sought to ‘take it by force’ and make Jesus a king right then. This group was not, however, allowed to succeed in their aim. The Jewish leaders, though more evil in their intentions, were allowed to take Christ in order to carry out the crucifixion.

Bible Reading: Hebrews 4:1-7:28

Scripture Memory: 1 John 2:11 “But he that hatheth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this wonderful day. We always enjoy celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the Light of Life to us. His rising means that we have hope. Without it, we would have nothing. With it, we are emboldened to believe that through him we have those exceeding great and precious promises that You have supplied to us. How can we ever praise You and thank You and glorify You enough? You are worthy of a lifetime of praise, Heavenly Father. You are so good and kind to us! We fail often to see just how nice You are. Please accept our sacrifice of praise as a token of our love for what You have done for us in Christ Jesus. Thank You for Jesus and his resurrection! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman with cancer in her head. Pray for a man recovering from surgery. Pray for churches everywhere this morning.

Journal Entry #13090

Matthew 11:11
   The identification of the kingdom of heaven is the key to many passages in the gospels. Many different interpretations have been advanced in order to understand the phrase. I always understand it to refer to Christ himself. If taken this way, Jesus is saying that, though John was the greatest prophet that had yet walked the earth, the least of those who are ‘in Christ’ is greater than him. In other words, Jesus is pointing to himself once again. He is not minimizing John, but making it clear that John and all of the other Old Testament prophets, were less than the kingdom of heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. If John, or anyone else, failed to accept Christ, they would suffer the greatest loss, no matter how great they might themselves be.

Bible Reading: Philemon 1-Hebrews 3:19

Scripture Memory: 1 John 2:11 “But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You do in our minds. You give us clarity of thought and understanding. If we want wisdom, You will give it to us freely. If we seek to know You more and have Your knowledge within us, You will help us to have it. Thank You for being so open-handed with Yourself! You let us puny little people know the greatness of Your person. You cultivate a relationship with us. Wow! How can we ever thank You enough for that personal relationship with Christ that we have by Your mercy? Thank You for life through Jesus! Thank You for life with Jesus! Thank You for life in Jesus! Give us a sense of Your awesome grace and love towards us. May we know You and be familiar with all of Your ways. You are the Glorious One, Lord God Almighty! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a man recovering from surgery. Pray for a man having family trouble. Pray for a missionary in Africa.

Journal Entry #13089

Matthew 11:10
   Regardless of whatever else may be said about John, he fulfills a major prophecy of Scripture. This prophecy, concerning the ‘messenger in the wilderness’ is found in Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3. It is actually quite interesting that we have here a direct interpretation of prophecy. This was somewhat rare. God usually allowed the Jews to ‘figure it out,’ but here Jesus makes it abundantly clear. This is all the more reason to accept the words of John concerning Jesus, the Messiah.

Bible Reading: 2 Timothy 3:1-Titus 3:15

Scripture Memory: 1 John 2:11 “But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this and every day which You give us so freely. We don’t have to wake up and ask for a day of breath and health, and yet You often give us that. We don’t have to ask You to keep us from calamities, though we should. Either way, You care for us. It is amazing to think about all of the things that You do for us because of Your love that we would never think to ask for. Can we ever know just how kind You are? Oh Father, Your greatness overwhelms us! It is the apex of our thought, the theme of our song, and the anthem of our cause. We could never find a better use of our time and talent than to know You better. Thank You for Your Son, the Lord Jesus. He is such a comfort to us! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a man having surgery today. Pray for a lady with cancer in her head. Pray for a man recovering from a leg injury.

Journal Entry #13088

Matthew 11:9
   The importance of John to the overall prophetic program would be difficult to overestimate. He was a prophet, to be sure, just as much as any prophet of the Old Testament. Virtually all of the Jews agreed to this. Very few tried to invalidate his ministry. Yet, they failed to realize the full significance of the ministry of John. They should have remembered that Malachi was the last true prophet they had known. Malachi had ministered four hundred years earlier. He had prophesied of the coming of John (Malachi 3:1).
   Thus, the ministry of John as the first true prophet in such a long period of time was the big tip-off that the Messiah had arrived. Indeed, John’s message made this abundantly clear. It is amazing that people often recognize a prophet, honor him as a prophet, and fail to listen to anything he says. Many saw the activity of the prophets as a sign of good things, but failed to listen to their messages.

Bible Reading: 1 Timothy 5:1-2 Timothy 2:26

Scripture Memory: 1 John 2:11 “But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for always being faithful to lead us, even when we don’t listen. You are truly worthy of all the glory as You show Your Truth to humanity. You are very gracious to us. You always love us, and You will let us know when we are wrong. Thank You for Your discipline and instruction. Without them, we would have to try to teach ourselves. Oh Father, thank You for Christ Jesus our Messiah! He means so much to us! You are so wise in Your plan for this world. Thank You! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a lady who is pregnant and has cancer. Pray for a man having surgery this week.

Journal Entry #13087

Matthew 11:8
   Ministers of the gospel will not always be found to wear the nicest clothes. Some may be found that must wear the poorest garments. They, like John, may still be accounted servants of God Almighty. Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are more like the world than like a true minister of Christ. This does not mean we should not wear our best. It does mean we should not disdain those ministers of the gospel for whom their best may be rags.

Bible Reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:1-1 Timothy 4:16

Scripture Memory: 1 John 2:11 “But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for another day to serve You. Thank You for being so patient with us. We fall so far short of what we know we ought to do for You. We live lives that are not half of what they should be. Yet, You value us, You love us. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for pastors in America.

Journal Entry #13086

7: Jesus begins to ask the people about John. He is going to tell them something about him. But, first he gives a simple illustration. He asks if they went out to see a reed shaken in the wind. Evidently, Jesus is trying to illustrate John’s preaching style. John, from a distance, might have looked much like something swaying back and forth in the wind. He preached, apparently, with great fervor. So, many may have simply gone out to see him just to see his manner. Thus, Jesus is preparing to tell them that there was more to John than his manner, his message was of great importance.

Daily Bible Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-2 Thessalonians 2:17

Daily Memory Verse: 1 John 2:11 “I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.“

Daily Tidbit: 1 John 2:11 tells us something that we do not often think about. We are forgiven for the sake of Christ. In other words, it is a glory to him that he brings us forgiveness. To claim knowledge of him and yet not accept his gift of forgiveness is to bring shame to him.

Praise Journal: Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You have done in the past for us. So much of what we have in Christ happened before we were ever born. It is amazing to realize that You loved us before we knew what love was. Each day You lead and guide us by Your Spirit, and through Your Word. We know that You are present with us all the time. In the days ahead, no matter what happens, we know that You are in control. You already have it all planned out, and You know when everything will all work out. It is so good to know You! Thank You, Father, for Jesus! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Journal Highlights: Pray for a man having problems in his marriage.

Personal Journal Entry #13085

6: Jesus reminded John, and his hearers, that it was his person that they needed to accept. Obedience to his Word was the proper response to Christ. Prophecy was fulfilled enough to show that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. They simply had to trust in him.

Daily Bible Reading: Colossians 3:1-1 Thessalonians 3:13

Daily Memory Verse: 1 John 2:11 “I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.”

Daily Tidbit: God asks us to accept the offence of the cross. The devil tempts us to accept no offence to ourselves, yet desensitizes us to our own destruction.

Praise Journal: Heavenly Father, thank You for each day that You give us to serve You. Though we do not always understand Your ways, we trust in Your care for us. You always want what is best for us. You always lead us in the right way. You always protect us. May we always trust in Your care! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Journal Highlights: Pray for a man having surgery this week. Pray for a woman who has cancer having surgery this week. Pray for an urgent silent request.

Personal Journal Entry #13084

4: The key to this verse is the word ‘again.’ The two disciples from John had come because John heard about the works of Christ. Now they would have an eyewitness account of the same thing. John, as all of us, was to believe the Truth.
5: Not all of the prophecies concerning the Messiah were fulfilled during his first coming. But, he is not dead, as many suppose. He is very much alive, and he is coming back. Many prophecies were fulfilled. In this verse, Jesus is reminding John and his disciples of some of them.

Daily Bible Reading: Philippians 4:1-Colossians 2:23

Daily Memory Verse: 1 John 2:11 “I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.”

Daily Tidbit: In America, more churches are closing their doors each year than there are churches being started.

Praise Journal: Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You are. You are so great and good. Your mercy is wonderful. Your grace is amazing. Your love is unfathomable. Thank You for this Sunday. Thank You for the Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem, and all that it means to us. Thank You for this upcoming Easter week. We love to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Without it, we would have nothing to celebrate. Thank You for Jesus! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Journal Highlights: Pray for a woman that has cancer, and is pregnant. Pray for an urgent silent request.

Personal Journal Entry #13083

3: This question, though satisfactorily answered by Christ, is the question that many Jews are still asking today. When will he that shall come indeed come? They do not believe Christ is the Messiah. They refuse to consider the evidence. But, thankfully, all Jews are not that way.

Daily Bible Reading: Philippians 1:1-3:21

Daily Memory Verse: 1 John 2:10 “He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.”

Daily Tidbit: The proper interpretation of the Scriptures is very important. Many have come up with some very strange interpretations over the years. I must say that I think the best rule of thumb in biblical interpretation is honesty. Not trying to make the text say what you want it to say is very important. It is dishonest to give in to the temptation to use a questionable interpretation.

Praise Journal: Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You have done for us. You have given us Your Word, the Bible. You have given us Your Son, Jesus. You have provided eternal salvation for us. How can we ever thank You enough. Oh Father, every thought of You fill my soul with joy. May we meditate upon the Truth of Your greatness at all times. I love You! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Journal Highlights: Pray for a lady having problems with her stomach.

Personal Journal Entry #13082

2: I have never stumbled upon a real good explanation of this verse. Every suggested answer to John’s purpose here seems to be lacking in my mind. So, allow me to add my feeble suggestion. First of all, John heard about what Jesus was doing. Yet, in Jesus’ answer to him he mentions his works. This would seem rather odd would it not? To answer a question occasioned by Jesus works Jesus points to his works? What does this mean? Well, secondly, we must consider that John also knew the Scriptures. Like the other believing Jews, including the disciples, he was expecting the Messiah to set up an earthly kingdom at that time. He knew that one of the elements of the Messiah’s work would be releasing prisoners, which is referred to in the same passages that Jesus alludes to in his answer (Isaiah 42:7, 61:1). John was in prison at the time. So, John, like many, was confused. Jesus did not deride John for this. Indeed, he simply reminded John that he needed to just trust in him.
   It is important to realize that the people of God at Jesus first coming understood the program of the Messiah, but forgot the person of the Messiah. They were so busy looking for fulfilled prophecy that they often overlooked the forest for the trees. In our day, we seem to have a danger of doing the opposite. We take great comfort in the person of Christ, but forget that he has a very specific program planned out. John the Baptizer was the best of men, so we are in good company. We must simply learn, as he did, to trust and obey.

Daily Bible Reading: Ephesians 4:1-6:24

Daily Memory Verse: 1 John 2:10 “He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.”

Daily Tidbit: Only when we come to our wit’s end to we finally realize just how much we depend upon Almighty God.

Praise Journal: Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the strength to go on when it seems like everything is happening at once. You are so merciful and gracious. Thank You for Jesus! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Journal Highlights: Pray for a missionary on the field in Africa.

Personal Journal Entry #13081