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Insights and thoughts for Day 13 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 days. If you would like to follow along with the book offered exclusively on Amazon, please refer to https://www.amazon.com/Reading-Bible-Cover-365-Days/dp/B0B6XSNMY6/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?
This is a podcast sharing thoughts and insights for the accompanying the daily reading schedule for the book, Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days.
Welcome to Day 13 of Reading the Bible Cover to Cover in 365 Days!
Let us pray:
Lord, help us learn more of You and Your ways as we read Your Word today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Let’s see what Jesus teaches us in Matthew Chapter 13!
Jesus tells parables in chapter 13. Jesus used parables to give deeper meaning to a Truth He was trying to convey. There were Pharisees and scribes in His audience, and since their hearts were cold, they could not really understand the meaning of what He was saying. In verse 9, He said, “He who has ears [to hear], let him be listening and let him consider and perceive and comprehend by hearing.” And then He said that whoever understood spiritual truths would be given more – abundantly more, but those who had just a little understanding – well, it would be taken away. I believe this means that those who lean in, whose hearts are soft, who desire to learn from Jesus will be given understanding and learn. But those who stood in unbelief, like the Pharisees, couldn’t understand and comprehend what He was telling them. This was no accident. It was foretold in the Old Testament many times, and it was no surprise to the Lord because He knew the hearts of men.
In this chapter, Jesus explains His parable about sowing seeds, so that I won’t go into that. However, I would like to point out verse 22, where He talks about the cares of the world – meaning pleasure, glamour, delight, and deceitfulness of riches. These things choke and suffocate the Word so it yields no fruit. We can be careful, then, to put less importance on the things of the world and more importance on pressing into knowing God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit as we do in this study.
Jesus tells a parable about a field where an enemy sown the weeds into the field. God shows His love here by not removing the sinners in our world too soon by rooting out all of them; some believers are also rooted out.
Then Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a mustard seed grain. The smallest seed grows into the largest herb that becomes a tree. And in this tree, birds find shelter. I believe He was talking about the seed of Christianity starting small but then becoming large – both far and wide – and it becomes a shelter for all of us. We find shelter in the tree that leads to eternal life, Christ Jesus.
Verse 35 tells us Jesus shared things hidden from everyone since the beginning of time. Those listening to Him were privy to the fantastic Truths He shared. We are blessed to have access to His words now.
Verses 44-47 are underlined in my Bible: "The kingdom of heaven is like something precious buried in a field, which a man found and hid again; then in his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field." Would we give up everything we have for eternity with Jesus? Would we seek it above all else? I encourage us to take some time and reflect on the parables Jesus tells us in this chapter.
The last significant point is the unbelief of Jesus in Hi town. He amazed them with His teaching, but as soon as they were amazed, they started questioning how He could know so much. Doubt entered their minds. This is a perfect example of the seed that fell on the ground that the birds ate up (in other words, the enemy stole belief from these new believers). He could hardly do any miracles there because of their lack of belief. This is an excellent example of faith – or the lack of it. When our faith wanes, our miracle may be stolen as well. We will soon learn that Jesus teaches us to pray and believe earnestly. We can pray that the Lord will infuse an extra measure of faith into our hearts. He can and will do this for us.
Let’s see what’s happening in Acts chapter 13!
Paul and Barnabas go out sharing the Good News of the resurrection of Christ. One Sabbath, they spoke to a congregation about everything that happened from the time of Moses through the current day. They talked about Jesus and how He died and rose again. The following week, the city gathered to hear Paul talk, but jealousy reared its ugly head, and Paul and Barnabas had to leave town. The people spoke against the Israelites and told them that they would go to the Gentiles and give them the Good News since they rejected them. This is good news for us.
The Gentiles rejoiced and praised God, and all chosen to receive salvation received it. We can be reverently thankful the Jewish nation rejected the Messiah for the most part. Because of this, the news of Jesus’ resurrection spread throughout the region. Paul and Barnabas had to leave that town because of the uproar.
Genesis 25 takes us to Abraham marrying another woman with whom he had six children. Abraham lived to be 175 years old and was buried next to Sarah. Everything he had was left to Isaac.
Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, couldn’t conceive children, just as Sarah was unable. But Isaac prayed for her, and God granted them not one but two children. They were twins. She felt them struggle within her and prayed to seek the Lord’s wisdom.
He told her she carried two nations within her. Imagine the magnitude of this! Esau and Jacob were their names, and they couldn’t have been more different. One liked to hunt, the other liked to cook, and their parents favored a different one. These are the makings of crafty and cunning deception.
Jacob stole Esau’s birthright with food. It was probably the most simple plan to steal an inheritance ever carried out.
In Chapter 26, the Lord appeared to Isaac. He gave Isaac instructions about where to live. And He told him that if he lived there, He would bless him and his descendants. The Lord reaffirmed His covenant with Abraham with Isaac.
Isaac obeyed the Lord. However, like father, like son. He feared the country's leaders and told them Rebekah was his sister instead of his wife. No harm came to either of them as God protected them.
God not only protected Isaac but richly blessed him in every way as He said He would. The Lord appeared to him a second time, telling him who He was, saying, “I am the God of Abraham, your father. Fear not, for I am with you and will favor you with blessings and multiply your descendants for the sake of My servant Abraham.” Can you imagine hearing these words from God? Favor and blessings. But more than that, God was telling him who He was. God wanted Isaac to know Him. He wanted him to know His name. This is the God we serve – the God Who wants us to know Him. Let us lean into learning more about Him.
The last event in this chapter occurs as Esau takes two wives from the wrong people. We will read more about how this plays out in future chapters.
Let’s see what Psalm 13 teaches us.
This is another psalm written by David. He was running from King Saul, who was pursuing him to take his life. We see David getting tired of fleeing with no end in sight. His days were dark. But in verses five and six, he intentionally turns his heart to praising God. It must not have been easy. Imagine his days when he was on the constant lookout for his enemy. David didn’t want to harm King Saul because he knew he was God’s anointed. Even though Saul had fallen from God’s favor, he was still in power, and David wanted God to take care of Saul’s demise, not himself. So, he waited, fled, waited, fled, fought wars, and repeat. These were tough days for young David, yet he never faltered in praising God. He still writes that God “has dealt bountifully with” him. Yes, he was a man after God’s heart.
Let us pray:
O Lord, thank You for Your Word that teaches us the benefits of staying deeply connected to You. Thank You for sending Your Son to teach us more about You. Your ways are often the opposite of our ways and thinking. Please impart more wisdom into our hearts. Help us receive all the wisdom You offer. In Jesus’ name, amen.