Refreshing Our Spirits With Scripture

Matthew 15. 21  Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22  And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.” 23  But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.” 24  But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25  Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26  But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” 27  And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” 28  Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. Psalm 43. 43...

Matthew 15. 15  Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, 2  “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” 3  He answered and said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? 4  For God commanded, saying, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; [ a ] and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ [ b ] 5  But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God ”— 6  then he need not honor his father or mother.’ [ c ] Thus you have made the commandment [ d ] of God of no effect by your tradition. 7  Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: 8  ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And [ e ] honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. 9  And in vain they worship ...

Matthew 14. 22  Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. 23  And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. 24  But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, [ a ] tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25  Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26  And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” 28  And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29  So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30  But when he saw that the wind was bo...

Matthew 14. 13  When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities. 14  And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick. 15  When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food.” 16  But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” 17  And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.” 18  He said, “Bring them here to Me.” 19  Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes. 20...

Matthew 14. 14  At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report about Jesus 2  and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.” 3  For Herod had laid hold of John and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 4  Because John had said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5  And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet. 6  But when Herod’s birthday was celebrated, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7  Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. 8  So she, having been prompted by her mother, said, “Give me John the Baptist’s head here on a platter.” 9  And the king was sorry; nevertheless, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he commanded it to be given to her. ...

Matthew 13. 53  Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there. 54  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? 55  Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, [ h ] Simon, and Judas? 56  And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?” 57  So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” 58  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.  Psalm 40. 40  I waited patiently for the Lord ; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. 2  He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. 3  He h...

Matthew 13. 47  “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, 48  which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. 49  So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, 50  and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” 51  Jesus said to them, [ e ] “Have you understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” [ f ] 52  Then He said to them, “Therefore every scribe instructed concerning [ g ] the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old.” Psalm 39. 39  I said, “I will guard my ways, Lest I sin with my tongue; I will restrain my mouth with a muzzle, While the wicked are before me.” 2  I was mute with silence, I held my peace even from good; And...

Matthew 13. 45  “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, 46  who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Psalm 38. 13  But I, like a deaf man, do not hear; And I am like a mute who does not open his mouth. 14  Thus I am like a man who does not hear, And in whose mouth is no response. 15  For in You, O Lord , I hope; You will hear, O Lord my God. 16  For I said, “Hear me, lest they rejoice over me, Lest, when my foot slips, they exalt themselves against me.” 17  For I am ready to fall, And my sorrow is continually before me. 18  For I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin. 19  But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong; And those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied. 20  Those also who render evil for good, They are my adversaries, because I follow what is good. 21  Do not forsake me, O Lord ...

The reality is that my relationship with God is based on His mercy toward His children and not my perfect performance. This is the basis for how I am supposed to treat others. Luke 6. 27  “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28  bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29  To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. 30  Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. 31  And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. 32  “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34  And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive bac...

There is a blessing to being poor and there is a bad side to being rich. Poor people with friends know they are there for good reasons and will not leave them if money is not there. Rich people don't know why exactly their friends are friends.  They might leave when the money is gone. Luke 6. 20  Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: “Blessed are you poor,      For yours is the kingdom of God. 21  Blessed are you who hunger now,      For you shall be filled. 24  “But woe to you who are rich,      For you have received your consolation. 25  Woe to you who are full,      For you shall hunger. Proverbs 19. 4 Wealth makes many friends, But the poor is separated from his friend. 6  Many entreat the favor of the nobility, And every man is a friend to one who gives gifts. 7  All the brothers of the poor hate him; How much more do his friend...

Matthew 13. 44  “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Psalm 38. 38  O Lord , do not rebuke me in Your wrath, Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure! 2  For Your arrows pierce me deeply, And Your hand presses me down. 3  There is no soundness in my flesh Because of Your anger, Nor any health in my bones Because of my sin. 4  For my iniquities have gone over my head; Like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 5  My wounds are foul and festering Because of my foolishness. 6  I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. 7  For my loins are full of inflammation, And there is no soundness in my flesh. 8  I am feeble and severely broken; I groan because of the turmoil of my heart. 9  Lord, all my desire is before You; And my sighing is not hidden from You. 10...

Matthew 13. 36  Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.” 37  He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38  The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. 39  The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40  Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 41  The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42  and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43  Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! ...

On the Release of Children and Grandchildren 1. They get involved with some fairly big systems that seem hard to deal with at times. These seem to not work well at times. As big as they are I know that God is bigger. 2. As I am tempted to be afraid for them I must remember words from God as we have lived through hard times, “Do not be afraid.”. 3. Jesus is the Savior, I am not. 4. Great things happen in humble places. 5. The children and grandchildren are not mine. They are God’s. He loaned them to me for a time for my learning and growth. Thank you God. 6. They must become independent. It is God’s plan that they fly out of the nest. That is not failure. That is success. 7. Others have survived and flourished through generations of releasing and turning them over to God. 8. God is a good, good Father and He knows what is best. 9. I wanted freedom of choice for myself and I want it for them. I do not want to pressure and manipulate them. I must quit t...

Matthew 13. 33  Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures [ c ] of meal till it was all leavened.” Prophecy and the Parables 34  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, 35  that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.” [ d ] Psalm 37. A little that a righteous man has Is better than the riches of many wicked. 17  For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, But the Lord upholds the righteous. 18  The Lord knows the days of the upright, And their inheritance shall be forever. 19  They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. 20  But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the Lord , Like the splendor of the meadows, ...

Matthew 13. 24-26  He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too. 27  “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’ 28  “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’ “The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’ 29-30  “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’” 36  Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of ...

I have friends who are going through the sadness of the loss of their father.   They need to hear again the good news.   There is a certain place the story has to end, resurrection  and so it has to have a certain kind of beginning. It does have that beginning. There is Herod, the murderer of innocent children and a madman. But there is Elisabeth  and Zechariah  and John the Baptist born amazingly to people who were well along in years. There is Herod But there is  Gabriel,  Joseph  and Mary. Highly favored Mary. The Lord is for us Mary. You have found favor with God Mary. There is Herod But there is Jesus. Great Jesus. Son of David Jesus. Reign forever Jesus. There is nothing impossible with God Jesus. Baby jumping in the womb because of Jesus. God scatters the proud and exalts the humble Jesus. Salvation from our enemies Jesus. We can serve without fear Jesus. Knowledge of forgivenes...