Henry: Welcome To Immerse: The Daily Bible Reading Experience.
Day 54
When Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his 12 disciples.
He went out to teach and preach in towns throughout the region.
John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah
was doing, so he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, are you the Messiah
we've been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?
Jesus told them, go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen.
The Blind Sea, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured.
The deaf here, the dead are raised to life and the good news is being preached
to the poor and he added, God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.
As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to
the crowds, what kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see?
Was he a weak read, swayed by every breath of wind, or were you expecting to
see a man dressed in expensive clothes?
No.
People with expensive clothes live in palaces.
Were you looking for a prophet?
Yes, and he is more than a prophet.
John is the man to whom the scriptures refer when they say, look, I am sending
my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.
I tell you the truth of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the
Baptist, yet even the least person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is.
And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the kingdom
of Heaven has been forcefully advancing and violent people are attacking it.
For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward
to this present time, and if you are willing to accept what I say he is.
Elijah, the one the prophets said would come.
Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand to what can I compare?
This generation, it is like children playing a game in the public square.
They complain to their friends.
We played wedding songs and you didn't dance, so we played funeral songs.
And you didn't mourn for John didn't spend his time eating and drinking
and you say he's possessed by a demon.
The son of man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say He's a glutton
and a drunkard and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners, but wisdom
is shown to be right by its results.
Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his
miracles because they hadn't repented of their sins and turned to God.
What sorrow awaits you, Zen and Beth Sayada.
For if the miracles I did in you had been done in Wicked Tire
and Sitin, their people would've repented of their sins long ago.
Clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their
heads to show their remorse.
I tell you, tire and Sitan will be better off on Judgment Day than
you and you people love Capernaum.
Will you be honored in heaven?
No, you will go down to the place of the dead for if the miracles I
did for you had been done in Wicked Sodom, it would still be here today.
I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on Judgment day than you at that time.
Jesus prayed this prayer.
Oh, father Lord of heaven and earth.
Thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever
and for revealing them to the childlike.
Yes, father, it pleased you to do it this way.
My father has entrusted everything to me.
No one truly knows the son except the Father, and no one truly knows the
father except the son and those to whom the son chooses to reveal him.
Then Jesus said, Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy
burdens, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you.
Let me teach you because I am humble and gentle at heart, and
you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.
At about that time, Jesus was walking through some grain fields on the Sabbath.
His disciples were hungry, so they began breaking off some
heads of grain and eating them.
But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, look, your
disciples are breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath.
Jesus said to them, haven't you read in the scriptures what David did when
he and his companions were hungry?
He went into the house of God and he and his companions broke the law by
eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat.
And haven't you read in the law of Moses that the priests on duty in
the temple may work on the Sabbath?
I tell you there is one here.
Who is even greater than the temple?
But you would not have condemned my innocent disciples if you knew
the meaning of this scripture.
I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices for the son of
man is Lord, even over the Sabbath.
Then Jesus went over to their synagogue where he noticed
a man with a deformed hand.
The Pharisees asked Jesus.
Does the law permit a person to work by healing on the Sabbath?
They were hoping he would say yes so they could bring charges
against him, and he answered.
If you had a sheep that fell into a well on the Sabbath,
wouldn't you work to pull it out?
Of course you would.
And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep?
Yes.
The law permits a person to do good on the Sabbath.
Then he said to the man, Hold out your hand.
So the man held out his hand and it was restored just like the other one.
Then the Pharisees called a meeting to plot how to kill Jesus.
But Jesus knew what they were planning, so he left that area
and many people followed him.
He healed all the sick among them, but he warned them not to reveal who he was.
This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning him.
Look at my servant whom I have chosen.
He is my beloved who pleases me.
I will put my spirit upon him and he will proclaim justice to the nations.
He will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public.
He will not crush the weakest read or put out a flickering candle.
Finally, he will cause justice to be victorious and his name will
be the hope of all the world.
Then a demon possessed man who was blind and couldn't speak was brought to Jesus.
He healed the man so that he could both speak and see.
The crowd was amazed and asked, could it be that Jesus is
the son of David the Messiah?
But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, no
wonder he can cast out demons.
He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.
Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed.
A town or family splintered by feuding will fall apart.
And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided in fighting against himself.
His own kingdom will not survive.
And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcist?
They cast out demons too.
So they will condemn you for what you have said.
But if I am casting out demons by the spirit of God, then the Kingdom of
God has arrived among you for who is powerful enough to enter the house of
a strong man and plunder his goods.
Only someone even stronger, someone who could tie him up
and then plunder his house.
Anyone who isn't with me opposes me, and anyone who isn't working with
me is actually working against me.
So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven except blasphemy against the
Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven.
Anyone who speaks against the son of man can be forgiven.
But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven either
in this world or in the world to come.
A tree is identified by its fruit.
If a tree is good, its fruit will be good.
If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.
You brood of snakes.
How could evil men like you speak?
What is good and right?
For whatever is in your heart determines what you say.
A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and
an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.
And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment Day
for every idol word you speak.
The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.
One day some teachers of religious law and Pharisees came to Jesus and
said, teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.
But Jesus replied, only an evil adulterous generation would demand a miraculous
sign, but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.
For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so
will the son of man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights?
The people of Nineveh will stand up against this generation on judgment
day and condemn it for they repented of their sins at the preaching of Jonah.
Now, someone greater than Jonah is here, but you refuse to repent.
The Queen of Sheba will also stand up against this generation
on judgment day and condemn it for, she came from a distant land
to hear the wisdom of Solomon.
Now, someone greater than Solomon is here, but you refuse to listen.
When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert
seeking rest, but finding none.
Then it says, I will return to the person I came from.
So it returns and finds its former home, empty, swept, and in order then
the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all
enter the person and live there.
And so that person is worse off than before.
That will be the experience of this evil generation.
As Jesus was speaking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood
outside asking to speak to him.
Someone told Jesus, your mother and your brothers are standing outside
and they want to speak to you.
Jesus asked, who is my mother?
Who are my brothers?
Then he pointed to his disciples and said, look, these are my mother and brothers.
Anyone who does the will of my father in heaven is my
brother and sister and mother.
Later that same day, Jesus left the house and sat beside the lake.
A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat.
Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore.
He told many stories in the the form of parables, such as this one, listen.
A farmer went out to plant some seeds as he scattered them across his field.
Some seeds fell on a footpath and the birds came and ate them.
Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock.
The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow, but the plants soon
wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn't have deep roots, they died.
Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants.
Still other seeds fell on fertile soil and they produced a crop
that was 30, 60 and even a hundred times as much as had been planted.
Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.
His disciples came and asked him, why do you use parables
when you talk to the people?
He replied?
You are permitted to understand the secrets of the kingdom of
heaven, but others are not.
To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given and they
will have an abundance of knowledge.
But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they
have will be taken away from them.
That is why I use these parables.
For they look, but they don't really see.
They hear, but they don't really listen or understand.
This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, when you hear
what I say, you will not understand.
When you see what I do, you will not comprehend for the hearts of these people
are hardened and their ears cannot hear.
And they have closed their eyes so their eyes cannot see, and their
ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot
turn to me and let me heal them.
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
I tell you the truth.
Many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they
didn't see it and they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn't hear it.
Now listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds.
The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message
about the kingdom and don't understand it.
Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts.
The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately
receive it with joy, but since they don't have deep roots, they don't last long.
They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted
for believing God's word.
The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear
God's word, but all too quickly.
The message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lo of
wealth, so no fruit is produced.
The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and
understand God's word and produce a harvest of 30, 60, or even a hundred
times as much as had been planted.
Here is another story Jesus told.
The kingdom of heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field,
but that night as the worker slept, his enemy came and planted weeds
among the wheat, then slipped away.
When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew.
The farmer's workers went to him and said, sir, the field where you planted
that good seed is full of weeds.
Where did they come from?
An enemy has done this.
The farmer exclaimed.
Should we pull out the weeds?
They asked?
No.
He replied, you'll uproot the wheat if you do.
Let both grow together until the harvest.
Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them
into bundles and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.
Here is another illustration Jesus used.
The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field.
It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants.
It grows into a tree and birds come and make nests in its branches.
Jesus also used this illustration.
The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread.
Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it
permeated every part of the dough.
Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these
when speaking to the crowds.
In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables.
This fulfilled what God had spoken through.
The prophet, I will speak to you in parables.
I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world,
then leaving the crowds outside.
Jesus went into the house, his disciples said, please explain to us
the story of the weeds in the field.
Jesus replied, the son of man is the farmer who plants the good seed.
The field is the world, and the good seed represents the people of the kingdom.
The weeds are the people who belong to the evil one.
The enemy who planted the weeds among the wheat is the devil.
The harvest is the end of the world, and the harvesters are the angels.
Just as the weeds are sorted out and burned in the fire, so it will
be at the end of the world, the son of man will send his angels and
they will remove from his kingdom.
Everything that causes sin and all who do evil.
And the angels will throw them into the fiery furnace where there will
be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their father's kingdom.
Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.
The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field.
In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to
get enough money to buy the field.
A again.
The Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls.
When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it.
Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the
water and caught fish of every kind.
When the net was full, they dragged it up onto the shore, sat down and
sorted the good fish into crates, but through the bad ones away.
That is the way it will be at the end of the world.
The angels will come and separate the wicked people from the righteous,
throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace where there will
be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Do you understand all these things?
Yes.
They said we do.
Then he added.
Every teacher of religious law who becomes a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is
like a homeowner who brings from his store room new gems of truth, as well as old.
This concludes today's Immerse Reading experience.
Thank you for joining us.