Matthew 18:1-10 The Toddler Boss
In that hour, the disciples came to Jesus saying, "Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And he called to himself a child, he in their midst and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you change and become like children, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one child like this in my name, receives me. But whoever traps one of these little ones who believe in me, it is good to him that a donkey's millstone be hung around his neck and would be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of traps! For traps necessarily come, yet woe to the man through whom the trap comes. But if your hand or your foot traps you, cut it off and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter into life crippled or lame than having two hands or two feet be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye traps you, pull it out and throw it from you. It is better for you single-eyed to enter into life than having two eyes to be thrown into the fire of hell. See that you do not disrespect one of these little ones. For I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.
At that time, Jesus’ students approached him and asked, “Who gets to be the boss in God’s coming kingdom?” He called over an infant and put him right in the middle of them. He said, “Pay attention now. Unless you become completely transformed and become like a child, you won’t even get through the front door of God’s kingdom. The one who will be boss is the one who will be socially on the level of this toddler. And if you welcome and show hospitality to a child like this, then you are welcoming me. But whoever traps one of the insignificant ones who believe in me, it would be better for him to strap himself to the bottom of the Queen Mary and sink it than what he would suffer as punishment. The world is a terrible place because of traps that make you sin! Yes, it is true, traps are inevitable—but how awful to be the agent of the trap! So if something deeply important to you—as important as one of your limbs!—causes you to stray away from God, get rid of it! It is better for you to be without one of your limbs, but alive, than to be whole but in hell. And if whatever you see causes you to stray away from God, get rid of it! It is better to be half blind but alive than to see everything but end up in hell. And be very careful that you do not disrespect one of my insignificant disciples—for they have a line directly to the throne of God!
Matthew 19-- Divorce
And it happened when Jesus completed these words, he left Galilee and went to the territory of Judea across the Jordan and great crowds followed him and he healed them there. And Pharisees came to him, testing him and saying if it is lawful for a man to divorce his wife according to whatever cause. And answering, he said, "Haven't you read that He who created from the beginning, he made them male and female? and He said, "Because of this a man will leave the father and the mother and will unite with his wife and the two will be one flesh. Thus they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God puts together a human must not separate.” They said to him, "Why then did Moses command to give a written document of divorce and divorce her?" He said to them, "Because of your stubbornness Moses permitted to you to divorce your wives, however, from the beginning it was not like this. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another commits adultery.
Jesus completed his speech and left Galilee for a time, traveling to Judea, on the East side of the Jordan River. As usual, many crowds gathered to him and he healed many. And, as usual, the Pharisees followed him, and asked him a highly debated question to cause him problems. They asked, “According to Moses’ law, can a husband divorce his wife for any and all reasons?” He answered them, “Haven’t you read your Bible? Moses made it clear that God created all things in the beginning, including humanity which He created male and female. And God said, ‘Because I made humanity into two kinds of beings, the man will leave his father and mother in order to unite with his wife and make a new family, thus the two will make one family.’ Therefore a marriage is not two, but a single unit. So whatever God has fused together, it should never be right for a human to de-fuse, to tear apart into chaos.”
They replied to this, “So why did Moses give us the command of divorce? He said to give the wife a written document and to separate from her?” Jesus said, “Moses knew your hearts. He knew that you would divorce anyway, so he gave you the means of divorce. But God’s ideal from the beginning is not separation but union. Listen carefully, there is only one reason to divorce one’s spouse—adultery, for then the faithless spouse has already broken the union. But anyone who divorces for any other reason and then turns around to marry another person, they have then been faithless to their original marriage and is an adulterer.”
Matthew 21-- Gang Warfare
But what do you think? A man had two children. And approaching the first, he said, "Child, go today work in the vineyard." And he answered, "I won't" but later he changed his mind and went. And approaching the second he said the same thing. And answering, he said, "I, Lord." And he did not go. Which of the two did the will of the father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Amen I say to you that the toll collectors and prostitutes will go before you into the kingdom of God. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him but the toll collectors and the prostituted believed him. And you were seeing, but did not change your mind after to believe him.
Listen to another parable. A man was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and rented it to farmers and went away. And when the time of produce came, he send this slaves to the farmers to receive of his produce. And the farmers took his slaves and beat one and killed another and stoned a third. Again he sent other slaves greater than the first and they did the same to them. And after he sent to them his son saying, "They will be ashamed of my son." But the farmers, seeing the son, said to themselves, "This is the heir. Come let us kill him and have his property." And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. Therefore when the Lord of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those farmers?" They said to him, "He will do evil to those evil ones., destroying them and he will rent the vineyard to other farmers who will give to him the produce in it's time." Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures, "The stone that the builders rejected this became the head stone, for made this happen and it is amazing in our eyes."? Therefore I say to you that the kingdom of God will be carried from you and given to a nation making it's fruit.
“I’d like your opinion about this: There’s this guy I know who had two kids. He asked one kid to clean up his room and the kid stubbornly answered ‘No way!’ But after some thought, the kid changed his mind and cleaned up his room. The father went to his second kid and asked her to do the same thing. She answered, ‘Of course, Dad. Whatever you want.’ But she never did go to clean up her room. So which of these two did what their father wanted them to do?” They responded, “The first kid.” Jesus then said, “It is for this reason that the drug addicts and the sex workers will experience God’s utopia and you won’t. John showed you the way of God and you didn’t believe him so as to repent and be baptized. But the drug addicts and sex workers flocked to him to get a new start. You all saw this, but you still didn’t change your mind to repent and be baptized.”
“Now listen to this story. A man owned a few blocks in an urban area, so he built a set of apartment buildings there, rented them out and then set managers over each building to keep them up and to collect the rent. Month after month, he sent employees to the managers to collect the proceeds, but the managers shut one out, beat up another, and another disappeared and was never heard from again. Then the owner sent groups of employees to collect his proceeds, and this started a gang war, but it didn’t get him a single dime. So then the owner sent his son figuring that the sight of him would cause the managers to reconsider their actions. But seeing the owner’s son at the door, the managers decided quickly that if the son was out of the way, the owner, being old and feeble, there being no one to care for the property after him, would just wither and fade away. So they grabbed the son, took him out of the city and killed him, leaving his body exposed to the elements. So let me ask you, what do you think the owner will do to those managers?” One answered, “He will call the police?” Everyone listening to this laughed. Then another said, “In his fury, he will do to those evil managers exactly what they did to him. He will kill them all and give the management to someone who will give to him what he deserves.” Jesus replied, “You are correct. So what is your problem? Haven’t you read in the Word, ‘The one whom the leaders rejected as a criminal has been chosen as the king of them all—and this is an amazing thing to see’? God’s nation will be taken away from you and given to a people who will give Him the proceeds he requires.”
John 14
Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going. How are we able to know the way?"
Jesus said to him, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. If you had known me you also will know the Father. And from now you will know him and have seen Him."
Phillip said to him, "Lord show us the Father and we are content."
Jesus said to him, "I am so much time with you and you have not known me, Phillip? He who knows me knows the Father. How do you say, 'show us the Father?' Don't you believe that I am in the Fater and the father is in me? The word which I say to you I do not speak for myself, but the Father who is abiding in me does His works. Believe in me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or else believe through these works."
Thomas responded, “Lord, don’t you see? We DON’T know where you are going? So how can you say we know the way you are going when we don’t know the destination?”
Jesus said, mysteriously, “I am the way, Thomas. I am the way to Father God, the road you must take. I am also the truth about Father God. I am also the life that Father God gives. So without me, no one can obtain Father God. But you will know Him from this point on because you have seen him already.”
Phillip, confused, said, “So are you going to show us the Father now? Do that and all our prayers will be answered.”
Jesus replied, “Phillip, you’ve been with me for so long but you still don’t have any clue who I am? If you have experienced me, then you have experienced the Father.” Jesus sighs. “I can’t believe you just asked me to show you the Father. Don’t you understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father? I am speaking to you, but I’m not speaking my own words, but the Fathers’. I do miracles, but it is not me doing them, but the Father. If you believe nothing else, believe me when I say that I am living in the Father and the Father is living in me. Or, at the very least, believe that it is true because of the miracles the Father did through me.”
Judas said to him, not the Iscariot, "Lord, what happened that you are going to make known Yourself to us and not to the world?"
Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves me my word he will keep and my Father loves him and to him we will come and make a dwelling with him. He who does not love me does not keep my words and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent me. These things I have spoken to you abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, who the Father will send in my name, that one will teach you all things and remind you all that I said to you."
Judas (not the betrayer) then said to him, “Lord, why is it that you are giving us the experience of knowing you, but you aren’t revealing yourself to the nation of Judea?”
Jesus responded, “Because we have love and they do not. If anyone loves me, he will not only hear my word but treasure it and do it. The obedient one who loves me the Father also loves. That is the one whom the Father and I chose to come to and to be roommates with. If anyone chooses to ignore what I say, he doesn’t love me or the Father—because what I say isn’t mine, but the Father’s. Since the Father appointed me to the task to speak, it is His words I speak. So I speak the Father’s words to you and not to them while I am here. But even though I am leaving, the Father will send you the Assistant—otherwise known as the Holy Spirit. The Father will deliver Him to you with my authority. He will inform you of all you need to know and will bring to your mind every word I said.”
John 13-- Humilitation and Hospitality
And before the Feast of Passover, Jesus, knowing that his hour came so that he would leave from this world to the Father, loving his own in the world-- to the end he loved them. And the feast occuring, the devil already having put into the heart of Judas Simonos Iscariot to betray Him, knowing that the Father gave all things to him into the hands and that he came from God and to go to God, arose from the feast and placed the outer garments and taking a towel he wrapped himself, then he put water into a basin and began to wash the disciple's feet and wiped with the towel which he had wrapped. Therefore he came to Simon Peter. He said to him, "Lord do you wash my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I do you do not know now, but you will know after this." Peter said to him, "You will not ever wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and head." Jesus said to him, "He who has bathed does not have need to be washed, except his feet. But is wholly clean. And you are clean, but not wholly." For he knew the one betraying him. Because of this he said, "Not all of you are clean." Therefore when he had washed their feet and taken his garments and reclined again, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you?" You call me 'teacher' and 'lord' and you speak well for I am. If therefore, I-- the lord and teacher-- wash your feet, also you are obligated to wash each other's feet. For I gave an example to you in order that as I did you also should do. Amen, amen I say to you, a slave is not greater than his lord nor is the one sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. I speak not to all of you. I know those I have chosen, but in order that Scripture be fulfilled, "He who eats my bread raised his heel against me." From now I say to you before it occurs in order that when it happens you may believe that I am. Amen, amen I say to you, he who receives whoever I send receives me. And he who received me receives the One who sent me.
It was the time of the Feast of the Exodus and Jesus knew that his time on earth was short, and he was soon to go to the Father. Yet, he loved his disciples on the earth, and he never stopped loving them, even to the end. At the time of the Feast, the Great Liar already convinced Judas Iscariot to hand Jesus over to the authorities. Jesus knew that the Father had granted him authority over all things, and that his purpose was to come from God and to return to Him.
Given all this, Jesus got up from the meal, set aside his dress coat and put on an apron. Jesus asked all of the disciples if they wanted anything as a refreshment, filling their wine cups. Then Jesus took a basin, filled it with water and washed all the disciple’s feet, wiping them dry with his apron.
As he came to Simon the Rock, Simon asked, “Do you think you’re going to wash my feet?” Jesus responded, “You don’t get it now, but you will understand later.” Simon the Rock said, “No. You will NOT wash my feet. It’s too humiliating. I won’t let you.” Jesus calmly said, “If you do not allow me to wash your feet then walk out and don’t come back. If you want to be of my nation, then you must allow this.” Simon said, “Well, then wash all of me—my hands are pretty filthy and I haven’t washed my hair for a while…” Jesus interrupted him, “You are already completely clean, because your commitment to me cleanses you. If you’ve taken a bath, you just need your feet washed, not your whole body. Yet your whole is not clean.” When Jesus said this last bit, he was referring to the Betrayer, who was still there in the room with them.
After all their feet had been washed, Jesus took off the apron, put on his dress coat, and stood in front of them. “Do you understand what I have done? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Master’, which is good, because that’s who I am. So if you see your Master being hospitable to you, then you must do so to each other. I gave you this example, so that you would act in this way. You are not greater than I—I am the one who sent you. It is good if you know what I teach you, but it is better if you do it—if you do what I do. Mind you, I am not talking to all of you. I have chosen you, but one of you was chosen to fulfill the Scripture, ‘He who receives my hospitality has slapped me in the face.’ I tell you this ahead of time so you will understand when it happens. Listen carefully—whoever welcomes into his home one of my workers actually receives me. And whoever receives me welcomes God who sent me to earth.
Revelation 4: God as Lord of All
After these things, I saw and behold a door was opened in heaven and the first voice which I had heard like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, "Come here and I will show you what is necessary to happen after this." Immediately I was in the spirit
After I took down all these letters,I looked up and noticed with surprise an open doorway in the sky. The bullhorn voice I had previously heard spoke again, “Come through this door and I will show you the later things.” At that moment, I had entered the Spirit world and everything was different. And behold a throne was standing in heaven and upon the throne one was sitting. And the one sitting was like in appearance a stone of jasper and carnelian and a rainbow was around the throne like in appearance made of emerald. And around the throne was twenty four thrones and upon the thrones were twenty four elders sitting, being clothed in white garments and upon their heads were golden crowns. And from the throne come lightning and sounds and thunder and seven lamps of fire burning before the throne which are the seven spirits of God. And before the throne was like a sea of glass like crystal.
I was in heaven, in the spirit world and at the center of all things was a throne, with the One sitting on the throne. I couldn’t see the One well, as he was shining like a clear stone of many colors, almost like a ruby. Around the throne was a stone, not unlike an emerald, except that it was like a rainbow. And I remembered the word God had spoken, that a rainbow would always be before Him to remind him to never destroy the human race. There were twenty four thrones circled around the one throne. In each throne sat the leaders of God’s people. They were dressed in black robes, like priests, but they had golden crowns on their heads.
The voice of God, coming from the being on the central Throne, was like thunder and loud sounds and flashes of light. All around the Throne were seven powerful flames—and I knew that these were the powerful spirits of God who did God’s will through the earth. Also in heaven was a great sea, which had water as clear as crystal. In this does the most powerful spirits live, even those who were the great enemies of humanity. But the one on the throne was Lord of them all.And in the midst of the throne and around the throne four living ones, full of eyes in front and behind. And the first living one was like a lion, and the second living one was like a calf, and the third living one had a face as a man and the fourth living one was like a flying eagle. And the four living ones, each of them having six wings, covered with eyes all around and within, have no rest day and night, saying, "Holy holy holy, Lord The God The Almighty-- He who was, and He who is and He who is coming."
Also in the throneroom of God were four powerful representatives of Living Ones. They supported the throne and was around the throne, even as the temple shows. They all had eyes all over them. The first power was like a lion—representing the wild beasts. The second power was like a young ox—representing the domesticated beasts. The third one had a face that seemed human—representing humanity. And the fourth power was like a living eagle—representing the beasts of the sky. Each of these creatures had six wings and even the wings had eyes all over them. They saw all things in their realm and reported to the Lord of Heaven. And without end, all day and all night, they would cry out “Holy holy holy! Yahweh, the all-powerful God! All history is His, as is this age and all that is to come!”And when the living ones give glory and honor and thanks to the one who sits on the throne, to the Living One forever and ever, the twenty four elders fall before the one who sits on the throne and worship the eternally Living One and throw their crowns before the throne, saying, "You are worthy, our Lord and our God to receive the glory and the honor and the power because you created everything and because your will they existed and were made.”
The Enthroned One is receiving all of this praise and honor and gratitude—He is the Lord of all the living eternally, through all ages. Every time the four living ones proclaim His power, the twenty four elders would get off of their thrones, fall down before the Enthroned One, and place their crowns before Him. At this time, they would all say, “You alone, our Lord and God, are deserving to receive the praise and honor and all authority that we have to give you. You alone fashioned everything. Because you desired it, everything exists and You made them.”
Revelation 1
The uncovering of Jesus Christ, which God give to show to his slaves that which must quickly happen, and sending it, he made it known by his angel to his slave John who testified to the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ everything he saw. Blessed is the one who recites and are those who hear the words of this prophecy and who keep that which is written in it, for the time is near.
God sent this writing to His servants, concerning what is about to happen and displaying the reality about Jesus, the Great King. God sent it via His spiritual messenger to his servant John, who proclaimed everything he saw, both God’s word and the life and teaching of Messiah Jesus. The one who recites this prophecy obtains God’s grace, as are those who hear and obey this prophecy—for the fulfillment is close.John to the seven fellowships which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before His throne and from Jesus Christ, the Witness, the Faithful One, The Firstborn of the dead and the Ruler of the kings of earth. To him who loves us and loosed us from our sins by his blood and He has made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to him the glory and the might in the ages. Amen.
From John to the Seven Fellowships in Asia Minor:
Greetings—Charis and Shalom—
From the Am who was and who will be,
From the seven-fold Spirit who represents you before the Throne
And from Messiah Jesus,
Who testified to the truth
Who remained faithful to the end,
Who was first released from death
And who is Emperor over the rulers of the earth.
Jesus loves us to such a degree that
He released us from our sins through His death
And He created a kingdom out of us
So we could be priests to His God and Father.
To God be the ultimate respect and our strength both in this age and the one to come, amen.Behold he comes with clouds and every eye will see him and those who pierced him and every tribe on earth will mourn concerning him. Yes, amen.
Look—here he comes in the clouds! Every human will see him come! And those who killed him and those nations who rebelled against him will weep unhappily because of Him. Truly, may it be."I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "Who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
Yahweh God says, “I am the Prologue and the Epilogue and all in between. I Am. And Was. And Will. I am without equal in power.”I, John, your brother and co-fellowshipper in the suffering and kingdom and endurance in Jesus was on the island which is called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the day of the Lord and I heard behind me a great voice like a trumpet, saying, "What you see write in a book and send to the seven churches: To Ephesus, and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodikia."
I am John, your brother. I shared the suffering you suffered and because we all endured in Jesus we all share in Jesus’ kingdom. Due to God’s word and the testimony of Jesus I had to proclaim, I was on the island of Patmos, off the coast of Asia Minor. I was praying in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, when suddenly I heard a loud voice behind me shout as if through a bullhorn: “Write all you see on a scroll. Send that scroll to seven churches in the following cities: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodikia.” And I turned around to see the voice which was speaking with me and having turned I saw seven golden lampstands and in the middle of the lampstands was one like a son of man, being dressed in a long robe and a golden sash being wrapped around his chest. His head and his hairs were as white wool, as snow, and his eyes as a flame of fire. And his feet were like polished brass as burned in a furnace and his voice as the sound of many waters. And having in his right hand seven stars and from his mouth came out a sharp two-edged sword and his face as the sun shining in its strength.
I immediately turned around to see who was shouting at me and I first saw seven golden candles, each on its stand. And standing with them was the Spirit like a Son of Man. He was dressed in a long black robe with a purple sash across his chest. His face glowed, and his eyes shone like lights. His feet were callused, but strong like a fire-walker’s. His voice was powerful, commanding, as if his enemies could be crushed by his words, but the glowing of his face was joyous, as a warrior in victory. And in his right hand he held seven stars.And when I saw him, I fell toward his feet as dead and he placed his right upon me saying, "Do not fear. I am the first and the last and the living and I was dead and behold I am alive for age upon ages and I have the keys of death and of Hades. Therefore write what you have seen and what you see and what is about to happen after these things. The mystery of the seven stars which you saw upon my right and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are angels of the seven fellowships. And the seven lampstands are the seven fellowships.”
When I first gazed at all this, I fainted at his feet in fear. However, he put his hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I have all authority. I was dead, but now I live for all eternity. So now I am the ruler of Death and Hades. So write all of the visions you have seen—past, present and future. I will give you but the beginning of understanding: the meaning of the seven stars and the seven candles. The seven stars are the spirits of the seven churches. And the seven candles are the seven churches themselves.
