July 5, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – From Tombs to Redemption

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

From Tombs to Redemption

Matthew 23:27-28 – New International Version (NIV)

²⁷ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. ²⁸ In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”

Who does Jesus say are like “whitewashed tombs” (verse 27)?

How does Jesus describe “whitewashed tombs” (verse 27)?

What do the teachers of the law and the Pharisees look like on the outside (verse 28)?

What are they full of on the inside (verse 28)?

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

Ezekiel 37:1-14 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. ² He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. ³ He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

⁴ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! ⁵ This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. ⁶ I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. ⁸ I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” ¹⁰ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

¹¹ Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ ¹² Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. ¹³ Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. ¹⁴ I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’”

Whose hand was on Ezekiel (verse 1)?

What was the valley Ezekiel was set in full of (verse 1)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that the bones were very dry (verse 2)?

How did Ezekiel answer the question “can these bones live” (verse 3)?

Who was Ezekiel to prophesy to (verse 4)?

What will happen when the Lord makes breath enter the bones (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why will the coming to life of the bones cause the bones to “know that I am the Lord” (verse 6)?

What happened when Ezekiel “prophesied as I was commanded” (verse 7)?

When was their “no breath in them” (verse 8)?

Where was the breath that was to bring life to the restored bones to come from (verse 9)?

How did the restored bones respond when breath entered them (verse 10)?

Who are the bones (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what does God mean when He says “My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them” (verse 12)?

What will the people of Israel know when God opens their graves (verse 13)?

Who will be put into the people of Israel (verse 14)?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the Jews that Ezekiel was speaking to who were in exile in Babylonia in Ezekiel 37:1-14 and the teachers of the law and Pharisees that Jesus was speaking to in Matthew 23:27-28?

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

Romans 3:9-20 – New International Version (NIV)

⁹ “What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. ¹⁰ As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
¹¹     there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.
¹² All have turned away,
    they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
    not even one.”
¹³ “Their throats are open graves;
    their tongues practice deceit.”
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”
¹⁴     “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
¹⁵ “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
¹⁶     ruin and misery mark their ways,
¹⁷ and the way of peace they do not know.”
¹⁸     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

¹⁹ Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. ²⁰ Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.”

How are Jews and Gentiles alike (verse 9)?

Who is righteous (verse 10)?

Who seeks God (verse 11)?

What has “all” become when they turned away (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that “their throats are open graves” (verse 13)?

How much “cursing and bitterness” are in “their mouths” (verse 14)?

What are their feet “swift” to do (verse 15)?

How are their ways marked (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that “the way of peace they do not know” (verse 17)?

What is not “before their eyes” (verse 18)?

Why does the law say what it “says to those who are under the law” (verse 19)?

Who is declared “righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law” (verse 20)?

What is the law to accomplish (verse 20)?

In your opinion, what can we, who Paul makes clear in Romans 3:9-20 are dunrighteous and accountable to God for our sinfulness under the law, learn from Ezekiel’s vision about the dry bones in Ezekiel 37:1-14?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s discussion about the uniformity of all “Jews and Gentiles” being under the power of sin in Romans 3:9-20 impact our reading of what Jesus said to the teachers of the law and Pharisees in Matthew 23:27-28 about being “beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean”?

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

1 Peter 1:13-25 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. ¹⁴ As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. ¹⁵ But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; ¹⁶ for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

¹⁷ Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰ He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.

²² Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ²³ For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. ²⁴ For,

“All people are like grass,
    and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
²⁵     but the word of the Lord endures forever.”

And this is the word that was preached to you.”

In your opinion, what does Peter mean when he says “with minds that are fully alert and sober” (verse 13)?

What are we to set our hope on (verse 13)?

When did we conform to the evil desires (verse 14)?

Why should we be holy (verses 15 and 16)?

How should we live out our time (verse 17)?

In your opinion, why does Peter say that we are redeemed “from an empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors” (verse 18)?

What redeemed us (verse 19)?

When was Christ chosen (verse 20)?

Why is our “faith and hope” in God (verse 21)?

What should we do “deeply, from the heart” (verse 22)?

How have we been born again of imperishable seed (verse 23)?

What are people like (verse 24)?

What endures forever (verse 25)?

In your opinion, what can we learn by combining Paul’s discussion in Romans 3:9-20 about the universal sinfulness that we all share with Peter’s discussion in 1 Peter 1:13-25 about being redeemed by the “precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect”?

In your opinion, how does the vision of Ezekiel 37:1-14 about the dry bones and the promise “Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them.  I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.” obtain new richness when you consider Peter’s statement that “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God” from 1 Peter 1:13-25?

In your opinion, how does the fact that Jesus, who condemns the teachers of the law and Pharisees in Matthew 23:27-28 for being full of “hypocrisy and wickedness” but then, according to 1 Peter 1:13-25, redeemed us who also have “evil desires” with His “precious blood” show that there is hope for the teachers of the law and Pharisees and also everyone else?

In your opinion, what do these passages, from Matthew, Ezekiel, Romans and 1 Peter, show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:29 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

June 28, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Confessing and Cleansing

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Confessing and Cleansing

Matthew 23:25-26 – New International Version (NIV)

²⁵ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. ²⁶ Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.”

What part of the cup and dish does Jesus say the teachers of the law and Pharisees clean (verse 25)?

In your opinion, why would Jesus say that the inside of the cup is filled with “greed and self-indulgence” (verse 25)?

Where is the “blind Pharisee” to clean first (verse 26)?

In your opinion, why would the outside be clean after cleaning the inside (verse 26)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:25-26 show us about the Great Commission?

Isaiah 58:1-6 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
    Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
    and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.
² For day after day they seek me out;
    they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
    and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
    and seem eager for God to come near them.
³ ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
    ‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
    and you have not noticed?’

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
    and exploit all your workers.
⁴ Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
    and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
    and expect your voice to be heard on high.
⁵ Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
    only a day for people to humble themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
    and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
    a day acceptable to the Lord?

⁶ “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
    and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
    and break every yoke?”

How was Isaiah supposed to “declare to my people their rebellion” (verse 1)?

What do the people seem eager God to do (verse 2)?

In your opinion, why do the people point out that they have fasted and humbled themselves (verse 3)?

How does the people’s fasting end (verse 4)?

In your opinion, how does saying that the fast is “only a day for people to humble themselves” and “only for bowing one’s head like a reed” show what the people thought about the fast (verse 5)?

What is different about the kind of fasting that the Lord has chosen (verse 6)?

In your opinion, how was the limiting of the fasting of the people to things that they did without including what they could do for others in Isaiah 58:1-6 a prelude to the teachers of the law and Pharisees of Matthew 23:25-26 cleaning the “outside of the cup and dish” but ignoring the “greed and self-indulgence” within?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Isaiah 58 show us about the Great Commission?

Romans 7:14-25 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ “We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. ¹⁶ And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. ¹⁸ For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

²¹ So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.”

Who knows that the law is spiritual (verse 14)?

How does Paul describe himself (verse 14)?

What does Paul not understand (verse 15)?

What does Paul not do (verse 15)?

What does Paul do (verse 15)?

In your opinion, how does Paul doing what he does not want to mean that he agrees that the law is good (verse 16)?

What does the sin that Paul does (verse 17)?

What does not dwell in Paul’s sinful nature (verse 18)?

What does Paul keep doing (verse 19)?

If it is not Paul who keeps doing what he does not want to, then who is it (verse 20)?

In your opinion, why does Paul say that he finds “this law at work: although I want to do good, evil is right there with me” (verse 21)?

Who delights in God’s law (verse 22)?

What does the “other law at work in me” do (verse 23)?

How does Paul describe himself (verse 24)?

Who will rescue Paul from “this body that is subject to death” (verses 24 and 25)?

Where is Paul “a slave to God’s law” (verse 25)?

Where is Paul “a slave to the law of sin” (verse 25)?

In your opinion, what is the difference between the people that Isaiah was writing to in Isaiah 58:1-6 and Paul as he described himself in Romans 7:14-25?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the teachers of the law and Pharisees that Jesus was talking to in Matthew 23:25-26 and Paul as he describes himself in Romans 7:14-25?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Romans 7 show us about the Great Commission?

1 John 1:5-10 – New International Version (NIV)

⁵ “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

⁸ If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰ If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”

What does John do with the message “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all” (verse 5)?

When do we “lie and not live out the truth” (verse 6)?

Where do we need to walk in order to “have fellowship with one another” and have “the blood of Jesus, his Son” purify us “from all sin” (verse 7)?

In your opinion, why do we “deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” if we “claim to be without sin” (verse 8)?

What happens “if we confess our sins” (verse 9)?

Where is the word of Jesus “if we claim that we have not sinned” (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what do Paul in Romans 7:14-25 and John in 1 John 1:5-10 agree on about sin within us, and about what delivers us from that sin?

In your opinion, does the promise that Jesus “will forgive us from our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” if we confess our sins in 1 John 1:5-10 change our understanding of what God was trying to do in Isaiah 58:1-6 when He instructed Isaiah to “Declare to my people their rebellion and to the descendants of Jacob their sins”?

In your opinion, how does the statement in 1 John 1:5-10 that “if we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” help us to understand to predicament of the teachers of the law and Pharisees of Matthew 23:25-25?

In your opinion, what does this passage from 1 John 1 show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:27 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

June 21, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – The Tithe and First Love

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The Tithe and First Love

Matthew 23:23-24 – New International Version (NIV)

²³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. ²⁴ You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.” 

What do the teachers of the law and Pharisees give (verse 23)?

How does Jesus describe “justice, mercy and faithfulness” (verse 23)?

In your opinion, what does Jesus mean when He says “you should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former” (verse 23)?

What does Jesus say that the teachers of the law and the Pharisees “strain out” (verse 24)?

What does Jesus say that the teachers of the law and the Pharisees “swallow” (verse 24)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:23-24 show us about the Great Commission?

Micah 6:6-9 - New International Version (NIV)

⁶ “With what shall I come before the Lord
    and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
    with calves a year old?
⁷ Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
    with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
    the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
⁸ He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
    And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
    and to walk humbly with your God.”

Where does Micah ask if he should come with burnt offerings and calves a year old (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why would Micah ask if the Lord would be “pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of olive oil” (verse 7)?

How did Micah propose to take care of the “sin of my soul” (verse 7)?

In your opinion, who is the “mortal” (verse 8)?

What has the Lord shown the “mortal” (verse 8)?

How does Micah answer the question “and what does the Lord require of you” (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what did the people that Micah was talking to in Micah 6:6-9 have in common with the people that Jesus was talking to in Matthew 23:23-24?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Micah 6 show us about the Great Commission?

James 1:19-27 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁹ “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, ²⁰ because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. ²¹ Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵ But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

²⁶ Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. ²⁷ Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Who is supposed to “take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (verse 19)?

What does human anger not produce (verse 20)?

How is the “moral filth and the evil” that we are to get rid of described (verse 21)?

Where is the word that we are to humbly accept (verse 21)?

In your opinion, how can we be deceived by “merely” listening to the word (verse 22)?

How should we respond to the word (verse 22)?

Who is someone who “listens to the word but does not do what it says” like (verses 23 and 24)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to look intently “into the perfect law that gives freedom” (verse 25)?

What will be the result for the one who “looks intently into the perfect law” and “continues in it-not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it” (verse 25)?

Who deceives themselves (verse 26)?

What is “religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless” (verse 27)?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the people Micah was writing to in Micah 6:6-9 offering wonderful sacrifices, but not acting justly, loving mercy and walking humbly with God and the people that James is writing to in James 1:19-27 hearing the word of God but then not doing it, to the point that James tells them to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep themselves from being polluted by the world?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the teachers of the law and the Pharisees of Matthew 23:23-24 who Jesus recognized for the tithing of their herbs, but rebuked them for neglecting justice, mercy and faithfulness and the Christians that James is writing in James 1:19-27 who listened to the word, but then deceived themselves by not doing it?

In your opinion, what does this passage from James 1 show us about the Great Commission?

Revelation 2:1-7 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. ² I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³ You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

⁴ Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. ⁵ Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶ But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

⁷ Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”

Who is John supposed to write (verse 1)?

How does Jesus describe Himself (verse 1)?

What does Jesus know about the Ephesians (verse 2)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that the Ephesians have “persevered and have endured hardships for my name and have not grown weary” (verse 3)?

What does Jesus hold against the Ephesians (verse 4)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to forsake “the love that you had at first” (verse 4)?

How are the Ephesians to respond (verse 5)?

Who will remove the lampstand of the Ephesians if they do not repent (verse 5)?

What is in the favor of the Ephesians (verse 6)?

How will the victorious be rewarded (verse 7)?

In your opinion, is there a relationship between merely listening to the word and not doing it and therefore deceiving yourself as James talks about in James 1:19-27 and the forsaking the love that they had at first that Jesus directed John to write to the angel of the church of Ephesus about in Revelation 2:1-7?

In your opinion, what does the fact that the recipients of Micah 6:6-9 were told that offerings, including ridiculous offerings of “ten thousand rivers of olive oil” were not what God wanted help us to understand about the Ephesians of Revelation 2:1-7 who were praised for their deeds, hard work and perseverance, but were criticized for forsaking “the love you had at first”?

In your opinion, should the statement that Jesus told the teachers of the law and Pharisees in Matthew 23:23-24 that they “should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former” have any place in our discussion of the church at Ephesus who were praised for their deed, hard work and perseverance, but then reprimanded for forsaking the love that they had at first?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Revelation show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:25 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

June 14, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – The Gold and the Sacred

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The Gold and the Sacred

Matthew 23:16-22 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁶ “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? ¹⁸ You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰ Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. ²² And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.” 

What does Jesus call the teachers of the law and Pharisees (verse 16)?

In your opinion, why would the teachers of the law and the Pharisees say that it means nothing to swear by the temple but that swearing by the gold of the temple mean you are bound by the oath (verse 16)?

How does Jesus show them that they were wrong (verse 17)?

How does the next statement that Jesus speaks about the teachers of the law and the Pharisees resemble the first statement (verses 16 and 18)?

In your opinion, what is the difference in the basic understanding of what is valuable by Jesus and the teachers of the law and the Pharisees that is revealed in this passage?

What is someone swearing by if they swear by the alter (verse 20)?

What is someone swearing by if they swear by the temple (verse 21)?

What is someone swearing by if they swear by heaven (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:16-22 show us about the Great Commission?

1 Samuel 5:1-12 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. ² Then they carried the ark into Dagon’s temple and set it beside Dagon. ³ When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! They took Dagon and put him back in his place. ⁴ But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. ⁵ That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor any others who enter Dagon’s temple at Ashdod step on the threshold.

⁶ The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors. ⁷ When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.” ⁸ So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and asked them, “What shall we do with the ark of the god of Israel?”

They answered, “Have the ark of the god of Israel moved to Gath.” So they moved the ark of the God of Israel.

⁹ But after they had moved it, the Lord’s hand was against that city, throwing it into a great panic. He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors. ¹⁰ So they sent the ark of God to Ekron.

As the ark of God was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, “They have brought the ark of the god of Israel around to us to kill us and our people.” ¹¹ So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it will kill us and our people.” For death had filled the city with panic; God’s hand was very heavy on it. ¹² Those who did not die were afflicted with tumors, and the outcry of the city went up to heaven.”

Who captured the ark of God (verse 1)?

Where did they set the ark (verse 2)?

In your opinion, what did it mean that Dagon was face down on the ground before the ark of the Lord (verse 3)?

How was Dagon different the “following morning” (verse 4)?

Where will the priests of Dagon not step (verse 5)?

What did the Lord bring to the people of Ashdod and its vicinity (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why did the people of Ashdod say “the ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us” (verse 7)?

How did the rulers of the Philistines respond (verse 8)?

What happened to the people of Gath (verse 9)?

Where did the ark go next (verse 10)?

How did the people there respond (verse 11)?

What filled the city (verse 11)?

Where did the “outcry of the city” go (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what could the people of the Philistine cities of 1 Samuel 5:1-12 have taught the teachers of the law and Pharisees of Matthew 23:16-22?

In your opinion, what does this passage from 1 Samuel 5 show us about the Great Commission?

Romans 2:17-29 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁷ “Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; ¹⁸ if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; ¹⁹ if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, ²⁰ an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— ²¹ you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? ²² You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? ²³ You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? ²⁴ As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

²⁵ Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. ²⁶ So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? ²⁷ The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

²⁸ A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. ²⁹ No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.”

What are the components that Paul asks the readers about themselves:

In verse 17: If you call yourself - _______________, If you rely on - ______________, If you boast in - _____________________

In verse 18: If you know his - _______________, If you approve of what is superior because you are ___________________________________

In verse 19: If you are convinced you are - ______________________________, A ________________ for those who are in the dark

In verse 20: An ____________ of the foolish, An ______________ of little children

In your opinion, why does Paul indicate that the readers have all of the above “because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth” (verse 20)?

Who does Paul ask “do you not teach yourself” (verse 21)?

Who does Paul ask “do you commit adultery” (verse 22)?

Who does Paul ask “do you dishonor God by breaking the law” (verse 23)?

In your opinion, what is Paul saying when he says to the readers “As it is written: ‘God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you’” (verse 24)?

When does circumcision have value (verse 25)?

How does it change someone who is circumcised if they break the law (verse 25)?

How will those who are not circumcised, but keep the law’s requirements, be regarded (verse 26)?

Who will condemn the one with the “written code and circumcision” but are lawbreakers (verse 27)?

What is not “merely outward and physical” (verse 28)?

What is circumcision (verse 29)?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the Philistines of 1 Samuel 5:1-12 and the circumcised lawbreaking Jews of Romans 2:17-29?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the fact that the Jews of Romans 2:17-29 got distracted from the “circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit” to the outward and physical circumcision and the teachers of the law and the Pharisees of Matthew 23:16-22 missed the importance of the scared because the saw the value of the gold or the gift?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Romans 2 show us about the Great Commission?

Revelation 22:10-17 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁰ “Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. ¹¹ Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”

¹² “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. ¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

¹⁴ “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. ¹⁵ Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

¹⁶ “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

¹⁷ The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.”

Why is John not supposed to “seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll” (verse 10)?

In your opinion, why is the “one who does wrong” to continue to do wrong, the vile to continue to be vile, the one who does right to continue to do right, and the holy person to continue to be holy (verse 11)?

What is Jesus, who is coming soon, going to give to each person (verse 12)?

In your opinion, why does Jesus three times with different words say that He is the “Beginning and the End” (verse 13)?

Who does Jesus bless and what do they have a right to (verse 14)?

Who are the “dogs” who stay outside (verse 15)?

In your opinion, what is the difference between the “blessed” in verse 14 and the “dogs” in verse 15?

What does the “Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star” send by the angel to the churches (verse 16)?

Who says “come” (verse 17)?

What is the “one who wishes” to take (verse 17)?

In your opinion, what can we learn about the “circumcision of the heart” that Paul talks about in Romans 2:17-29 from the teaching of Jesus through John in Revelation 22:10-17 about those who “wash their robes” and those who are thirsty coming and taking “the free gift of the water of life”?

In your opinion, what does the discussion about the Philistines and their willingness to recognize that the God of Israel was greater than Dagon, but unwillingness to worship the God of Israel in 1 Samuel 5:1-12 help us to understand the “dogs” who are outside when all who are thirsty can “take the free gift of the water of life” in Revelation 22:10-17?

In your opinion, how does the inability of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees to see the value of the sacred in Matthew 23:16-22 because they were distracted by the value of the gold or the gift help us to understand why “those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood” in Revelation 22:10-17 might be unwilling to “wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city”?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Revelation show us about the Great Commission?

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