Category: Gospel of Matthew
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The Unclean Spirit Returns: Jesus and the Tragedy of a Generation Lost
When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn’t find any. Then it says, “I’ll go back to my house that I came from.” And returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order. Then off it goes and brings with it seven…
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Jesus and the Sign of Jonah: The Only Sign We’ll Ever Need
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was in the belly of the…
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The Storeroom of Our Hearts: Receiving the Good Gifts of God
How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. A good man produces good things from his storeroom of good, and an evil man produces evil things from his storeroom of evil. (Matthew 12:34–35) In commenting on this passage, the Expositor’s Bible Commentary sums…
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Listen to Your Heart: Finding the Way to Goodness and Grace
Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. A good man produces good things…
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Make the Good Tree Good: Jesus and the Call to Integrity
Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. (Matthew 12:33-34) It’s pretty rare that…
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Blaspheming God and Becoming the Devil: Jesus and the Unpardonable Sin
Anyone who is not with Me is against Me, and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters. Because of this, I tell you, people will be forgiven every sin and blasphemy, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven…
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The Great Gathering: When Jesus Brings Everyone Home
Anyone who is not with Me is against Me, and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters. (Matthew 12:30) To me, one of the most interesting things about Jesus’s confrontations with the Pharisees is the light they shed on his true mission. Because the Pharisees and other leaders judged Jesus on their idea of…
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The Time for Choosing Sides: Jesus and the Clash of Kingdoms
Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak was brought to Him. He healed him, so that the man could both speak and see. And all the crowds were astounded and said, “Perhaps this is the Son of David!” When the Pharisees heard this, they said, “The man drives out demons only…
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Eternal Horizons: How Jesus’s Mission Required Him to Trust the Father, and How We Must Do the Same (Jesus the Servant, Pt 2)
Hey everyone: My new book is out! You can pick up The Way of Restoration: Following Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount at Amazon or your favorite retailer, in ebook, paperback, and hardcover editions. And with that, I am resuming new writing on the blog. Thank you for your prayers and support, especially those…
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Coming September 30
Coming to your favorite online retailer in just two more days.