March 9, 2025 – A Study of Matthew – The Testimony of Love

The Testimony of Love

Leviticus 24:13-23 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ Then the Lord said to Moses: ¹⁴ “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. ¹⁵ Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; ¹⁶ anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.

¹⁷ “‘Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death. ¹⁸ Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution—life for life. ¹⁹ Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: ²⁰ fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. ²¹ Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death. ²² You are to have the same law for the foreigner and the native-born. I am the Lord your God.’”

²³ Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him. The Israelites did as the Lord commanded Moses.

Who spoke to Moses (verse 13)?

What are “all those who heard him” to do (verse 14)?

Who will “be held responsible” (verse 15)?

What must the “entire assembly” do to the one who blasphemes (verse 16)?

How should the person who “takes the life of a human being” be treated (verse 17)?

What should happen to someone who “injures their neighbor” (verse 19)?

What is the person who kills an animal to do (verse 21)?

How are the laws different “for the foreigner and the native-born” (verse 22)?

Who took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him (verse 23)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the difference between reacting to evil and reacting to one another?

Matthew 5:38-48 - New International Version (NIV)

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ ³⁹ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. ⁴⁰ And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. ⁴¹ If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. ⁴² Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? ⁴⁸ Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

What “have you heard” was said (verse 38)?

Who does Jesus say not to resist (verse 39)?

What should be given to the one who “wants to sue you” (verse 40)?

How far should the one who is forced to “go one mile” go (verse 41)?

Who should not be turned away (verse 42)?

What else “have you heard that it was said” (verse 43)?

Who does Jesus instruct prayer for (verse 44)?

Who does our Father in heaven send rain on (verse 45)?

What do the tax collectors do (verse 46)?

Who is perfect that we should be like (verse 48)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the difference between reacting to evil and reacting to one another?

In your opinion, why are the instructions in Matthew 5:38-48 so different from the instructions to Moses in Leviticus 24:13-23?

Romans 12:9-21 - New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. ²⁰ On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

What must love be (verse 9)?

How should Christians “be devoted to one another” (verse 10)?

What should Christians do with “spiritual fervor” (verse 11)?

Who should Christians “share with” (verse 13)?

Who should Christians “bless and do not curse” (verse 14)?

What should the Christian do “with those who mourn” (verse 15)?

Who should Christians live in harmony with (verse 16)?

How should evil not be repaid (verse 17)?

What should Christians do “as far as it depends on you” (verse 18)?

What should we “leave room for” (verse 19)?

How should Christians overcome evil (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the difference between reacting to evil and reacting to one another?

In your opinion, how does the instruction in Romans 12:9-21 to “leave room for God’s wrath” reveal a change from the instructions of Leviticus 24:13-23?

In your opinion, how are the instructions in Romans 12:9-21 a logical outcome of Jesus instructions in Matthew 5:38-48 to “be children of your Father in heaven”?

1 John 4:11-21- New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

¹³ This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. ¹⁶ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. ²⁰ Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. ²¹ And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

Why should Christians “love one another” (verse 11)?

When does God live in us and have His love “made complete in us” (verse 12)?

How do we know “that we live in him and he in us” (verse 13)?

What has John seen that he testifies to (verse 14)?

Who does God live in “and they in God” (verse 15)?

What is God (verse 16)?

What are Christians like “in this world” (verse 17)?

What does perfect love drive out (verse 18)?

Why do Christians love (verse 19)?

Who is a liar (verse 20)?

What is God’s command (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the difference between reacting to evil and reacting to one another?

In your opinion, how is the contrast between starting with blaspheming God and starting with loving God shown in Leviticus 24:13-23 and 1 John 4:11-21?

In your opinion, how does 1 John 4:11-21 help us understand how it’s possible to follow the command of Jesus in Matthew 5:38-48 to “be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect”?

In your opinion, how does 1 John 4:11-21 help us to follow the instruction of Paul in Romans 12:9-21 to “do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good”?

In your opinion, what do these Scriptures from Leviticus, Matthew, Romans and 1 John teach us about what it takes to hate “what is evil” and yet being able to love our “enemies and pray for those who persecute” us?

In your opinion, in what ways can we in love “testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world” today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

September 2, 2018 – Wisdom from Ecclesiastes and the Sermon on the Mount – Meaningless Toil to Life Changing Love

Meaningless Toil to Life Changing Love

Ecclesiastes 4:1-16 - New International Version (NIV)        

¹ Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:

I saw the tears of the oppressed—
    and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
    and they have no comforter.
² And I declared that the dead,
    who had already died,
are happier than the living,
    who are still alive.
³ But better than both
    is the one who has never been born,
who has not seen the evil
    that is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

⁵ Fools fold their hands
    and ruin themselves.
⁶ Better one handful with tranquillity
    than two handfuls with toil
    and chasing after the wind.

⁷ Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

⁸ There was a man all alone;
    he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
    yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
    “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”
This too is meaningless—
    a miserable business!

⁹ Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰ If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

¹³ Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning. ¹⁴ The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom. ¹⁵ I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. ¹⁶ There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

What did the Teacher see “taking place under the sun” (verse 1)?

Who did the Teacher declare was “happier than the living” (verse 2)?

Who has not “seen the evil that is done under the sun” (verse 3)?

What does the Teacher say that “all toil and all achievement” spring from (verse 4)?

In your opinion, what does the Teacher mean by “fools fold their hands and ruin themselves” (verse 5)?

What is better than “two handfuls with toil” (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why does the Teacher say that it is meaningless to endlessly toil alone (verse 8)?

Why are two better than one (verses 9 and 10)?

What do two lying down together do (verse 11)?

What is “not quickly broken” (verse 12)?

Who is better than a “foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning” (verse 13)?

Who followed “the youth, the king’s successor” (verse 15)?

Who was “not pleased with the successor” (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Matthew 5:43-47 - New International Version (NIV)

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? ⁴⁸ Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

What does Jesus say that His hearers have heard was said (verse 43)?

Who does Jesus tell us to love (verse 44)?

Who does Jesus tell us to pray for (verse 44)?

Who does our Father in Heaven cause His sun to rise on (verse 45)?

What do even tax collectors do (verse 46)?

What do even pagans do (verse 47)?

How are we to be (verse 48)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what causes the difference between the attitude of the Teacher who says that, due to oppression, the dead are better off than the living in Ecclesiastes 4:1-16, and Jesus, who commands in Matthew 5:43-47 “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”?

Romans 12:9-21 – New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. ²⁰ On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

What must be sincere (verse 9)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to “be devoted to one another in love” (verse 10)?

What are we supposed to keep (verse 11)?

How are we to respond to affliction (verse 12)?

Who are we to share with (verse 13)?

Who are we to bless (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why should we “rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn” (verse 15)?

Who should we be willing to associate with (verse 16)?

How should we not repay evil (verse 17)?

How should we live with others, if it is possible (verse 18)?

What should we leave room for (verse 19)?

How do we heap burning coals on our enemies heads (verse 20)?

How should we overcome evil (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what do the oppressed people that the Teacher talked about in Ecclesiastes 4:1-16 need to become the people that Paul instructed to “bless those who persecute you” and to “overcome evil with good” in Romans 12:9-21?

In your opinion, how can we who find it easy to be zealous in hating our enemies listen to the command of Jesus from Matthew 5:43-47 to “love your enemy” and still be able to follow Paul’s instruction from Romans 12:9-21 that we “never be lacking in zeal” even while we are overcoming “evil with good”?

1 Peter 4:4-11 – New International Version (NIV)

⁴ They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. ⁵ But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. ⁶ For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.

⁷ The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. ⁸ Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. ⁹ Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. ¹⁰ Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. ¹¹ If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

How will non-Christians be surprised by the Christians (verse 4)?

Who will the non-Christians have to give account to (verse 5)?

In your opinion, what does Peter mean when he says the gospel was preached “even to those who are now dead” (verse 6)?

Why should Christians be “alert and of sober mind so that you may pray” (verse 7)?

In your opinion, whose multitude of sins does love cover over (verse 8)?

How should hospitality be offered to others (verse 9)?

What should each one use the gift they received to do (verse 10)?

How should the Christian speak (verse 11)?

How should the Christian serve (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the dead that the Teacher said in Ecclesiastes 4:1-16 were “happier than the living, who are still alive” and the dead that the gospel had been preached to that Peter refers to in 1 Peter 4:4-11 similar?  And what is their biggest difference?

In your opinion, how does Peter’s instruction in 1 Peter 4:4-11 to “love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins” help us move toward obedience to the instruction of Jesus from Matthew 5:43-47 to “be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect”?

In your opinion, what do we learn from 1 Peter 4:4-11 that helps us in attempting to obey Paul’s instruction from Romans 12:9-21 “do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good”?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Ecclesiastes, Matthew, Romans and 1 Peter teach us about living oppressed versus serving “with the strength God provides”?

In your opinion, how do we move from a life of meaningless toil to life changing love?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)