Category: Uncategorized

Matthew 22:28
   The Sadducees thought themselves quite brilliant to invent this line of reasoning. Of course, it was not brilliant at all, being based upon a false assumption. This assumption was that persons are married in heaven. However, that this is an assumption is made obvious by the fact that Scripture nowhere specifically states that matrimony continues after death, but only that it ends with death.
   Therefore, because of their acceptance of an assumption as the truth, they had set themselves up for quite a failure. They thought they were putting a hard question to Jesus, one that would put him into a corner and force him to answer in a certain way. Instead, they gave him the opportunity to show the untenable nature of their doctrines.

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 11:1-13:18

Scripture Memory: James 2:2 “For if their come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this glorious day! You have given us so much to be thankful for. We have a whole myriad of blessings, and today we are most thankful for our fathers. They are so important to us, and we want to make them proud. May we never forget all of the blessings that we have through these dedicated men. Help me to be the kind of father and husband that I should be. You alone have the tools to make us all that we should be for You. You can help us to be the fathers that will make a difference to the next generation. Thank You for working, not only in my life, but in the life of my father and grandfather. Thank You for putting Christ into our path and making us more than we would have been without him. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman who will be getting some test results tomorrow. Pray for a woman recovering from a nasty fall. Pray for a woman recovering from a c-section.

Journal Entry #14159

Matthew 22:27
   Apparently, the woman was barren. Thus, it was the Lord’s choice that she be childless. In such cases, we must trust the wisdom of Almighty God. Trust in him would solve the whole issue. but, the Sadducees had to ask anyway.

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 8:1-10:22

Scripture Memory: James 2:2 “For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this fine day to serve You. Every Day we find more reasons to praise Your Holy Name. You are so amazing and wonderful! We love You and look so much forward to heaven. May we never cease to praise You with our lives. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman with back pain. Pray for several people with cancer.

Journal Entry #14158

Matthew 22:26
   Obviously this was an extreme case. If it even occurred at all, it would be the exception and not the rule. apparently they hoped that the amazing nature of this circumstance would strengthen their argument.

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 5:1-7:26

Scripture Memory: James 2:1 “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, You always know what is best. Thank You for always being at work in our lives. We do not deserve the least of Your mercies, but we cannot pay You back for them. All we can do is live for You. To know that Christ died for us is motivation enough to serve You for all of life. Thank You for Your love! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman who is not feeling well. Pray for a family travelling. Pray for a man undergoing radiation.

Journal Entry #14157

Matthew 22:25
   This was the custom of the Jews when a man died childless. It is hard to believe that there were seven brethren and only one of them got married. But, such is the story of the Sadducees.

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 3:1-4:49

Scripture Memory: James 2:1 “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this day of life. You are so good to us, giving us so much more than we deserve. How could we ever praise You and thank You enough for all that You have done. May we never cease to sing Your praise! You are gracious, loving, kind, and true. Thank You for You! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a family that just lost a loved one. Pray for several people with cancer.

Journal Entry #14156

Matthew 22:24
   Quoting from Deuteronomy 25 verse 5, the Sadducees hope to put Christ into a corner by Scripture. However, like many of the Jews, they knew the law quite well but added their own teachings. Thus, they ended up making assumptions first, and then they learned Scripture that supposedly backed up the assumptions. Such is always the path to error.

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 1:1-2:37

Scripture Memory: James 2:1 “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this day to serve You! You have given us so much, and yet we give You so little back. Thank You for Your mercy, justice, truth, love, grace, and kindness. You are truly amazing! May we never forget just how wonderful You are! 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 woman who is not feeling well. Pray for a family travelling.

Journal Entry #14156

Matthew 22:23
   The Sadducees were a strange lot. Having much political and religious influence in Judaism, they were a force to be reckoned with. But, there doctrine was no less hypocritical than that of the Pharisees. They did not believe in life after death, and so it would be expected that they would, sooner or later, challenge Christ on this subject. Like many sectarian, cultist groups today, they hung upon this one doctrine. It was their soap box. And it was, of course, untenable, unbiblical, ridiculous, and childish. But, being such an influence in their day, few would have dared to argue the point with them. Indeed, outside of Christ, only the Pharisees had the gall to do it.

Bible Reading: Numbers 34:1-36:13

Scripture Memory: James 1:27 “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your great love! You are so wonderfully amazing! May we never cease to sing Your praise with our whole heart. You are beyond all that we could ever imagine in Your greatness. May our lives be spent understanding You more and more. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a family that just lost a loved one. Pray for a woman awaiting the results of several tests. Pray for a man who has been in the hospital for a long time.

Journal Entry #14155

Matthew 22:22
   And why did they marvel? For the same reason that people are still marveling today. The amazing wisdom, captivating words, and powerful doctrine of the Holy Son of God are too much for this world. He cannot be ignored. He is too interesting to the human psyche to be brushed aside. Even those who hate him find him a worthy opponent. He is more than just a charismatic personality, a sagacious teacher, or a social change agent. He is the All-Powerful Son of the Living God, and he speaks as such. You cannot be neutral on Christ, either he is what he is, or he is a liar.

Bible Reading: Numbers 32:1-33:56

Scripture Memory: James 1:27 “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Christ! He is the Banner of our faith. He is the Master of our destiny. He is the Pilot of our souls. Without Him, all would be pointless. He is the one we can look to for all of life. He is our Hope, our Joy, our Life. All praise be to Him! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for an elderly woman who had a stroke. Pray for a man with cancer. Pray for a woman with cancer.

Journal Entry #14154

Matthew 22:21
  The hope of the Jewish leaders was that he would say something about the Roman government. But, it was a simple question with a simple answer. The coinage was provided by the Romans. They supplied public works, government, and the like. No matter if the Jews approved of their ways, the Roman rulers were due their tax. But, just as the money bore the image and writing of Caesar, each human bears the image and handiwork of Almighty God. Thus, to give a coin to a human governor is a small matter in comparison to what we owe to God.

Bible Reading: Numbers 30:1-31:54

Scripture Memory: James 1:27 “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for the clarity of Your Word. You do not hide the truth from us unless we refuse to hear it of our own will. You allow us to decide our own destiny. You let us make up our minds. But, You also do not fail to show us the end of our choices. Thank You for Your knowledge. It is so wonderful! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for our upcoming Vacation Bible School. Pray for an elderly woman in the hospital. Pray for a family that just lost a loved one.

Journal Entry #14153

Matthew 22:20
  Jesus always asks those simple but profound questions. Who’s picture is on it? Who wrote these words on it? And, by implication, who does it belong to? Everyone knew the answer to the first two questions, and would readily realize the answer to the third. Thus, by way of simple illustration, Jesus reminds everyone that coinage comes from a central location, and ultimately belongs to the government.

Bible Reading: Numbers 27:1-29:40

Scripture Memory: James 1:26 “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, Your love for us is so wonderful. May we live to honor You. We see our children and how they grow and learn and we are reminded that You gave them to us. Thank You for the children I have. They remind us of Your great glory all of the time. You are truly amazing and powerful. You can make such good stuff. You are worthy of my praise every time I look at and talk to my children. You are worthy of my praise for them even when I am away from them. You have done so wondrously! You always do the best. Thank You for Your Son. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a young man who needs salvation. Pray for a woman with lupus. Pray for a man with bad back pain that is keeping him out of church.

Journal Entry #14152

Matthew 22:19
   This was the Roman tax being discussed here. Do not get it confused with the temple tax that Jesus paid for himself and Peter from the fish’s mouth. This ‘penny’ was a Roman denarius, not a Jewish shekel or half-shekel. Jesus asks to see this coin so as to give them a very pointed illustration. He could have given his answer without asking to see a coin. But, the fact that there was such a coin readily available among them shows that they used the money of the Romans regularly. They had not rejected Roman coinage, though they resented the Roman tax.

Bible Reading: Numbers 25:1-26:65

Scripture Memory: James 1:26 “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for teaching us each day. I never want to stop learning. You are the best teacher. You are the Holy Teacher. I don’t have to worry that I am wasting my time when You teach me. I will use every bit of it. All Your teaching is profitable. Your Word is truth, and makes us simple folk very wise by the power of Your Spirit. Thank Your for Your Bible, and thank You for Your Son. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a family that is traveling. Pray for a man who has undergone several surgeries recently. Pray for a man who has been in the hospital for a long time.

Journal Entry #14151