Matthew 15:14
   When Jesus says here to ‘let them alone,’ he is not saying that their false teaching should not be resisted, but that the disciples should give up trying to reconcile them with Christ. The Greek literally reads, ‘give them up,’ don’t try to follow their logic any longer. The disciples, being Jews themselves, wanted to see the Jewish leaders embrace Christ as they had. The thought that this would ultimately happen, and that Jesus would be setting up his kingdom on the earth at that time.
   However, what Jesus was saying had already been revealed in the prophets. Jesus came to the Jews to find their religious system strong in appearance, but spiritually in a real mess. He is warning his disciples not to trust to the teachers of the Jews to figure out the Truth. Being blind guides, they would lead others astray.

Bible Reading: Psalms 11:1-18:50

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:22 “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.“

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the Truth. Though You tell us to love all, You do warn us about false teachers. Thank You for giving us the perfect standard of Your Word. It keeps us from having to trust human teachers to sort out the truth for us. You always know just what we need. Thank you for Your merciful provision. Your greatest blessing, Jesus, is and endless comfort to my heart. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for an older couple with health concerns. Pray for a woman with chronic health problems. Pray for a man who may have cancer.

Journal Entry #13269

Matthew 15:13
   By this Jesus means that the empty piety of the Jewish leaders was not from God. Almighty God is the farmer of true religion. His concern is with he fatherless and widows, and purity in heart, word, and deed. He did not institute the false system of Jesus’ day. And, as such, that system, or any like it, shall be rooted out and shown for the false planting that it is. The enemy has sown many false religious institutions into this world. They will all, ultimately, be shown for what they are, and fail utterly.

Bible Reading: Psalms 5:1-10:18

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:22 “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for inspiring us to embrace true religion. Having a practice for life that is based on Truth is such an equitable idea. You are fair with us in that You make the right way plain and available. Thank You for showing us the way to You. We don’t have to waste our lives with the false plants sown in this world by man and the devil. We can live a life that is worth living. Thank You for Your Son, by Whom the gospel has the power to save us. He is so wonderful! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a man who has health concerns. Pray for a woman taking cancer treatments. Pray for a man who is doing well in his recovery from a liver transplant.

Journal Entry #13268

Matthew 15:12
   So often we do not expect the next step that the Lord has planned. The disciples surely did not. They knew that Jesus was better than the Pharisees, but they did not understand why he was not concerned about offending them. They would have expected him to try to straighten out the hypocrisy of the religious in their day, rather than simply rebuking it and moving on. The mystery of the church was beginning to be revealed.

Bible Reading: Job 41:1-Psalm 4:8

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:22 “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this day. You have blessed us with another opportunity to serve You. Oh Father, thank You for Your love! It is overwhelming to think that the Almighty God of heaven and earth loves us. But, we know that You do. May we stand in awe of Your Word, and always be sensitive to it. You are very merciful to us to give us Your Word. It shows us the way we must take. Your guidance is so comforting and helpful! May we always desire the light of Your Word shining into our hearts. May we never doubt Your care for our souls. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a man with kidney failure. Pray for those involved in a shooting. Pray for a kids choir singing soon.

Journal Entry #13267

Matthew 15:11
   Do not be confused by Jesus’ words in this verse. He is speaking of holiness. The eating of food cannot by itself make a person unholy. He is not talking about the spread of germs or disease, but the spread of sin. When it comes to cleanliness and the prevention of disease and such, washing can be very helpful and necessary. But, when it comes to the prevention of sin, washing is no help. A murderer may wash his hands before his crime, but that will make him no less a sinner. A liar and cheat may keep many of these traditions of the elders, but still be a liar and a cheat.
   Jesus wanted people to consider their inner motivations. That which comes out of us is part of what is already in us. And that is sin. It is only with Christ that this may be changed. We need an inside out transformation, not simply a good hand-washing.

Bible Reading: Job 38:1-40:24

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:22 “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for taking care of our lives. We get so worked up about stuff, and yet You have it all figured out. You know just what we need, and what we need to do. You lead us in the right way because You love us. Thank You for teaching us patience and perseverance. We want everything to work out our way, but you have the best plan. Father, may we never miss Your great love and concern for our lives. You are the encouragement that our hearts crave. Thank You for Your blessings. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for an older man with cancer. Pray for a preacher with cancer. Pray for a family that just lost a loved one.

Journal Entry #13266

Matthew 15:10
   It is easy to miss the fact that Jesus often urged people to listen more closely to his words. Not only did he know that the religious leaders of the day were not offering the multitudes the Truth, he also knew that the multitudes were not paying attention half the time either. He encouraged people to learn to recognize and respond to the Truth from Almighty God. He still does this today.

Bible Reading: Job 35:1-37:24

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:21 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.“

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this day to worship You. May we realize every day all of the blessings that You have given us. You never forget what we do, and yet we easily forget Your blessings. You are so good to us. Thank You for Your greatness! You are to wonderful to properly describe with words. Thank You for Your Son, the Lord Jesus. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for an older couple with health needs. Pray for a young woman with spiritual needs. Pray for a woman’s unspoken request.

Journal Entry #13265

Matthew 15:9
   We have in our modern day many who would say doctrine is not so important. They would say that we should focus upon loving each other and leave the doctrine to work itself out. However, we cannot do the one without the other. If we do, we will fall into the danger mentioned here. The Jews were very careful to preserve the letter of the law, the interpretation of it was left up to their doctors. We must not allow any man’s opinion to be exalted above Scripture, even if that man loves his neighbor better than a whole host of other men. We may not exalt the opinions of man above the opinions of the Holy Word of Almighty God. We may not make it wrong to do or believe what the Scriptures allow, nor may we allow what God’s word forbids. Many will say that the Bible is not clear enough on matters to know what to believe. However, I have found by experience that those who follow the clear commands of the Word have little trouble understanding the more obscure principles. Obedience and understanding go hand in hand.

Bible Reading: Job 32:1-34:37

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:21 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your word. We cannot know what our lives would be like without the Bible and Your Holy Spirit here in this world. Indeed, the influence of Your Truth is felt on a much deeper level than the world cares to admit. Every corner of this globe we call home has been somehow influenced by the spread of the gospel. The church has changed the face of this world. Though some say it is for the worse, these are influenced by the master of deceit who feels the encroachment upon his dark kingdom. Little would we recognize a world run completely by Satan. Oh Father, thank You for Your power and influence in this world. Thank You for that Shining Light, the Lord Jesus Christ. In the name of Your precious Son I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman with cancer. Pray for a man who is recovering from shoulder pain. Pray for a young family. Pray for a young girl who has health concerns.

Journal Entry #13264

Matthew 15:8
   This quote, which comes from Isaiah 29:13, reminds us of a very important principle. To make statements about our devotion to the Lord with our mouth alone is the very essence of self-righteousness. To love him with our heart is something entirely different. Loving someone, being devoted to them, requires a desire to spend time with them and be around them and work on a relationship with them. Lip-service will bring you very close to an imaginary view of God, but only heartfelt obedience brings you closer to Almighty God.

Bible Reading: Job 29:1-31:40

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:21 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your mercy. You know exactly what is in our hearts, and yet you call us to Yourself anyway. You have made a way to escape the nastiness that is inside of us. Thank You for telling us Your Truth. May we always remember that You are a real person. You are not looking for lip-service, You are looking for life-service. We can find the greatest joy in serving You. Thank You! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a couple who’s children have been taken from them. Pray for a man with cancer. Pray for a woman who just lost her husband.

Journal Entry #13263

Matthew 15:7
   Hypocrisy is a problem we still struggle with today. Pretending to be pious while excusing your own sin comes naturally to us because of our sinful nature. Hypocrisy sickens us, and yet we are all guilty of it to some extent. Indeed, many who claim to hate it most are the most hypocritical.

Bible Reading: Job 24:1-28:28

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:21 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your goodness to us. You know the sin of our hearts, and yet you sent Christ to save us from it. You have given us a way to escape our awful hypocrisy. Thank You for the freedom that we can have in Christ. Only through him can we truly be free. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for an older couple with health issues. Pray for a woman’s unspoken request. Pray for a woman’s sons. Pray for an older lady with health concerns. Pray for a man recovering from a liver transplant.

Journal Entry #13262

Matthew 15:6
   The keeping of oaths has caused no end of confusion in Judaism. Their rules concerning oaths are quite confusing. They uphold them as very important, and will even break commandments in order to keep them.

Bible Reading: Job 21:1-23:17

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:20 “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.“

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your wisdom! I am glad You know everything. you have all the answers we need for life. May we always look to You for what we need, rather than relying on ourselves. Thank You for making Your Truth available to us. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for the families of four young people who were killed recently. Pray for a man who has been without a job for four years. Pray for two older ladies with health issues.

Journal Entry #13261

Matthew 15:5
   There was, in Jesus day, a practice of avoiding the commandment to honor one’s parents. Though this may not have been practiced widely, the fact of its very existence proves Jesus’ point. The Jews, even today, have devised clever ways of getting around the inconveniences that keeping the law of God puts upon them.

Bible Reading: Job 17:1-20:29

Scripture Memory: 1 John 3:20 “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your love for us. You are so gracious to us even though we have such a tendency to cut corners. How often do we do far less for You than we should, and yet You are merciful to us anyway. Father, thank You! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Prayer Requests: Pray for a father and son who both have health concerns. Pray for a man with cancer. Pray for a man with a bad infection. Pray for a man having complications as he recovers from a liver transplant.

Journal Entry #13260