August 10, 2025 – A Study of Matthew – Set Apart

Set Apart

1 Chronicles 17:1-14 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under a tent.”

² Nathan replied to David, “Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you.”

³ But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:

⁴ “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. ⁵ I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another. ⁶ Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their leaders whom I commanded to shepherd my people, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’

⁷ “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. ⁸ I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth. ⁹ And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning ¹⁰ and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies.

“‘I declare to you that the Lord will build a house for you: ¹¹ When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹² He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. ¹³ I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. ¹⁴ I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.’”

Where is the “arc of the covenant of the Lord” (verse 1)?

In your opinion, why did Nathan say, “Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you.” (verse 2)?

What came to Nathan “that night” (verse 3)?

What is David “not the one to” do (verse 4)?

Where has the Lord not done “from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day” (verse 5)?

What had the Lord “appointed” David to be (verse 7)?

Who will the Lord “provide a place for” (verse 9)?

What is the Lord going to build for David (verse 10)?

Who will “build a house” for the Lord (verses 11 and 12)?

What will the Lord be for this person (verse 13)?

How long will this person be over the Lord’s house and kingdom (verse14)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about being set apart?

Matthew 9:27-34 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁷ As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”

²⁸ When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

“Yes, Lord,” they replied.

²⁹ Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; ³⁰ and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” ³¹ But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.

³² While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. ³³ And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

³⁴ But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”

What did the two blind men call Jesus (verse 27)?

How did the blind men answer when Jesus ask them “do you believe that I am able to do this” (verse 28)?

What did Jesus say when He “touched their eyes” (verse 29)?

When did Jesus warn them “see that no one knows about this” (verse 30)?

What did the men do (verse 31)?

Who was brought to Jesus (verse 32)?

How did the crowd react when the “man who had been mute spoke” (verse 33)?

What did the Pharisees say (verse 34)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about being set apart?

In your opinion, how does 1 Chronicles 17:1-14 help us understand what it means when the two blind men of Matthew 9:27-34 call Jesus “Son of David”?

Romans 1:1-7 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— ² the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures ³ regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, ⁴ and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. ⁵ Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. ⁶ And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

⁷ To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Who was “set apart” for the gospel (verse 1)?

How was the gospel promised (verse 2)?

Who was the Son “as to his earthly life” a descendant of (verse 3)?

What was He appointed by “the Spirit of holiness” (verse 4)?

How has Paul received his “call” (verse 5)?

Who was Paul writing to (verse 6)?

What blessing does Paul give (verse 7)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about being set apart?

In your opinion, how does Romans 1:1-7 affirm “the word of God” that came to Nathan in 1 Chronicles 17:1-14?

In your opinion, what does Romans 1:1-7 help us understand about why Jesus in Matthew 9:27-34 was able to do things that caused the crowd to say, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”?

 

2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? ¹⁵ What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? ¹⁶ What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will live with them
    and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
    and they will be my people.”

¹⁷ Therefore,

“Come out from them
    and be separate,
says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing,
    and I will receive you.”

¹⁸ And,

“I will be a Father to you,
    and you will be my sons and daughters,
says the Lord Almighty.”

7 ¹ Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.

Who should Christians not be “yoked together with” (verse 14)?

In your opinion, “What harmony is there between Crist and Belial” (verse 15)?

What are “we” Christians (verse 16)?

Where will God live (verse 16)?

What are Christians to “come out from them and be” (verse 17)?

What will we be to the Lord Almighty (verse 18)?

What should we “purify ourselves from” (verse 1)?

Why should Christians perfect “holiness” (verse 1)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about being set apart?

In your opinion, how is God’s call of David from the pasture to being the ruler in 1 Chronicles 17:1-14 an example to Christians of the call to “come out from them and be separate” in 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1?

In your opinion, how does the reaction of the Pharisees to Jesus in Matthew 9:27-34 help us understand the reason Paul said in 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1 that believers and unbelievers should not be yoked?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s statement in Romans 1:1-7 about being “called to belong to Jesus Christ” become much more intimate in 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1?

In your opinion, what do these Scriptures from 1 Chronicles, Matthew, Romans, and 2 Corinthians reveal about the tensions between those who believe Jesus is “able to do this” and those who don’t?

In your opinion, how do we “separate” ourselves today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

January 5, 2025 – A Study of Matthew – Choices

Choices

Isaiah 7:1-17 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

² Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

³ Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. ⁴ Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. ⁵ Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying, ⁶ “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” ⁷ Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘It will not take place,
    it will not happen,
⁸ for the head of Aram is Damascus,
    and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.
Within sixty-five years
    Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people.
⁹ The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
    and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand firm in your faith,
    you will not stand at all.’”

¹⁰ Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, ¹¹ “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.”

¹² But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”

¹³ Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. ¹⁵ He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, ¹⁶ for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. ¹⁷ The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.”

Who did “King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel” march up to fight (verse 1)?

Why were the hearts of Ahaz and his people shaken (verse 2)?

Where was Isaiah and his son, Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why did the Lord tell Isaiah to call Rezin and Pekah “smoldering stubs of firewood” (verse 4)?

Who did they want to make the king of Judah (verse 6)?

What did the Sovereign Lord say (verse 7)?

How long would it take for Ephraim to “be too shattered to be a people” (verse 8)?

When would the King of Judah “not stand at all” (verse 9)?

What was Ahaz to ask for (verses 10 and 11)?

How did Ahaz respond (verse 12)?

What sign was the Lord going to give Ahaz (verse 14)?

What will happen before the “boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right” (verse 16)?

Who would the Lord bring on Judah (verse 17)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the choices we have in responding to God?

Matthew 1:18-25 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Who was Mary “pledged to be married to” (verse 18)?

What happened before “they came together” (verse 18)?

Why was Joseph thinking about divorcing Mary quietly (verse 19)?

Who appeared to Joseph in a dream (verse 20)?

Why was Joseph not to “be afraid to take Mary home” (verse 20)?

What were they to name the son Mary would “give birth to” (verse 21)?

Why did “all this” take place (verse 22)?

What does Immanuel mean (verse 23)?

When did Joseph do “what the angel of the Lord had commanded him” (verse 24)?

What did Joseph name Mary’s son (verse 25)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the choices we have in responding to God?

In your opinion, how does having the promise of the coming Immanuel at a time of threats great threats in Isaiah 7:1-17 influence your understanding of the promise of “God with us” in Matthew 1:18-25?

Romans 1:1-7 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— ² the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures ³ regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, ⁴ and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. ⁵ Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. ⁶ And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

⁷ To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

How did Paul describe his relationship with Jesus (verse 1)?

What was he “set apart” for (verse 1)?

Where were the gospel promises of the prophets recorded (verse 2)?

What was the Son’s “earthly life” as (verse 3)?

How did “the Spirit of holiness” appoint the Son of God in power by (verse 4)?

What did Paul receive from Jesus to “call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith” (verse 5)?

Who are the Gentiles called to belong to (verse 6)?

Who was the letter written to (verse 6)?

What did Paul pray that they would receive from “God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ” (verse 7)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the choices we have in responding to God?

In your opinion, what does Romans 1:1-7 help us better understand about the son called Immanuel in Isaiah 7:1-17?

In your opinion, what does Romans 1:1-17 teach us about the power that Jesus would use to “save his people” as promised in Matthew 1:18-25?

1 John 2:12-25 – New International Version (NIV)

¹² I am writing to you, dear children,
    because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.
¹³ I am writing to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
    because you have overcome the evil one.

¹⁴ I write to you, dear children,
    because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
    because you are strong,
    and the word of God lives in you,
    and you have overcome the evil one.

¹⁵ Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. ¹⁶ For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. ¹⁷ The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

¹⁸ Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. ¹⁹ They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.

²⁰ But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. ²¹ I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. ²² Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. ²³ No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

²⁴ As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. ²⁵ And this is what he promised us—eternal life.

Why was John writing to the “dear children” (verse 12)?

Who had the “young men” overcome (verse 13)?

Why did John write the “young men” (verse 14)?

Who does not have the “love for the Father” in them (verse 15)?

Where does “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” come from (verse 16)?

Who “lives forever” (verse 17)?

How does John know that it “is the last hour” (verse 18)?

What did “their going” show (verses 18 and 19)?

Why do the ones John was writing to “know the truth” (verse 20)?

“Who is the liar” (verse 22)?

Who “has the Father also” (verse 23)?

What is promised (verse 25)?

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

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about the choices we have in responding to God?

In your opinion, what does the choice between the Father and the world in 1 John 2:12-25 help us understand about the opportunity that Ahaz refused to seize in Isaiah 7:1-17?

In your opinion, how is Joseph’s choice of Mary and Jesus in Matthew 1:18-25 an example of the choice that the children, young men and fathers in 1 John 2:12-25 had made?

In your opinion, how is knowing that Jesus is the son of David and the Son of God as revealed in Romans 1:1-7 an important part of the overcoming that is discussed in 1 John 1:12-25?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Isaiah, Matthew, Romans and 1 John teach us about the results of our choices in response to God?

In your opinion, how can Joseph be an example for us today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)