March 22, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Prayer, Doubting and Maturity

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.”

Prayer, Doubting and Maturity

Matthew 21:18-22 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁸ “Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. ¹⁹ Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.

²⁰ When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.

²¹ Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²² If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

How did Jesus feel as He was heading to the city early in the morning (verse 18)?

What was on the fig tree that He saw beside the road (verse 19)?

Why did the tree wither (verse 19)?

In your opinion, why were the disciples amazed (verse 20)?

What did Jesus say that the disciples needed in order to be able to get the mountain to throw itself into the sea (verse 21)?

When will the disciples receive whatever they ask for in prayer (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 21:18-22 show us about the Great Commission?

2 Kings 5:1-19a - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy

² Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. ³ She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”

⁴ Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said. ⁵ “By all means, go,” the king of Aram replied. “I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold and ten sets of clothing. ⁶ The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: “With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.”

⁷ As soon as the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his robes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!”

⁸ When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: “Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.” ⁹ So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. ¹⁰ Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”

¹¹ But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. ¹² Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.

¹³ Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” ¹⁴ So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.

¹⁵ Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”

¹⁶ The prophet answered, “As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing.” And even though Naaman urged him, he refused.

¹⁷ “If you will not,” said Naaman, “please let me, your servant, be given as much earth as a pair of mules can carry, for your servant will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord. ¹⁸ But may the Lord forgive your servant for this one thing: When my master enters the temple of Rimmon to bow down and he is leaning on my arm and I have to bow there also—when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant for this.”

¹⁹ “Go in peace,” Elisha said.”

Who was Naaman and what was wrong with him (verse 1)

Why was an Israelite girl in Naaman’s house (verse 2)?

Who did the Israelite girl think could cure Naaman (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why did the King of Aram send a letter to the King of Israel (verses 4 through 6)?

How did the King of Israel respond to the letter (verse 7)?

What did Elisha tell the King of Israel that Naaman would know (verse 8)?

In your opinion, why did Elisha send a messenger to tell Naaman to bathe in the Jordan (verses 9 ad 10)?

How did Naaman react to Elisha’s instructions (verses 11 and 12)?

How were Naaman’s servants able to change his mind (verse 13)?

What happened when Naaman dipped himself seven times in the Jordan (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why did Naaman tell Elisaha that “there is no God in all the world except in Israel” (verse 15)?

Why did Naaman request all the earth that a pair of mules could carry (verse 17)?

What did Naaman ask the Lord to forgive him for (verse 18)?

How did Elisha send Naaman off (verse 19)?

In your opinion, how does understanding that Naaman almost missed getting the answer to his prayer because it did not come in the manner he expected in 2 Kings 5:1-19a help us to understand part of the message of Jesus about having faith and not doubting in prayer to get what we are praying for in Matthew 21:18-22?

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

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

² “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

⁹ Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. ¹⁰ But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. ¹¹ For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.

¹² Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”

What are we to consider “pure joy” (verse 2)?

How is perseverance produced (verse 3)?

When will we be “mature and complete, not lacking anything” (verse 4)?

How does God give when we ask for wisdom (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why should we “believe and not doubt” when we ask for wisdom (verse 6)?

What should the person who “is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind” expect to receive from the Lord (verses 6 and 7)?

In your opinion, how is a double-minded person “unstable in all they do” (verse 8)?

Who should “take pride in their high position” (verse 9)?

Who should “take pride in their humiliation” (verse 10)?

What will happen to the rich “even while they go about their business” (verse 11)?

How will the “one who perseveres under trial” be blessed (verse 12)?

In your opinion, how does the fact that Naaman was blessed by healing when he not only doubted but was angry in 2 Kings 5:1-19a help us to understand what James says about “God, who gives generously to all without finding fault” in James 1:2-12?

In your opinion, how does the statement that James makes about “the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind” in James 1:2-12 help us to understand about what Jesus meant when He said “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done.  If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” in Matthew 21:18-22?

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

Ephesians 4:11-16 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, ¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. ¹⁵ Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. ¹⁶ From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

Who gave the “apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers” (verse 11)?

Why are Christ’s people equipped for works of service (verse 12)?

In your opinion, why do we need to “reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature” to attain “the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (verse 13)?

What happens to infants in the faith (verse 14)?

How will we speak the truth when we “grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ” (verse 15)?

What does “each part” do as “the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love” (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the fact that both James 1:2-12 and Ephesians 4:11-16 urge us to become mature and both also talk about being blown and tossed about?

In your opinion, how does Naaman, who went from doubting and anger to faith that was strong enough that he wanted the earth of Israel to take back to aid him in worshipping the God of Israel in 2 Kings 5:1-19a help us to understand what Paul meant in Ephesians 4:11-16 when he talked about “infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching”?

In your opinion, how does Paul emphasizing love in his discussion of the mature, who are not “tossed back and forth by the waves” in Ephesians 4:11-16 help us to understand the statement of Jesus in Matthew 21:18-22 “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²² If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”?

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

Next, back to Matthew 21:23 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

March 15, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – A House of Prayer and Exaltation

March 15, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – A House of Prayer and Exaltation

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.”

A House of Prayer and Exaltation

Matthew 21:12-17 – New International Version (NIV)

¹² “Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ¹³ “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’”

¹⁴ The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.

¹⁶ “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.

“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,

“‘From the lips of children and infants
    you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?”

¹⁷ And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.”

Where did Jesus enter (verse 12)?

Who did He drive out (verse 12)?

How did He treat the money changers and the sellers of doves (verse 12)?

What did He say that “My house” would be called (verse 13)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus say they were making it “a den of robbers” (verse 13)?

Who came to Jesus in the temple courts (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why did the chief priests and the teachers of the law become “indignant” (verse 15)?

How did Jesus reply to the question “Do you hear what these children are saying” (verse 16)?

Where did Jesus go to spend the night (verse 17)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 21:12-17 show us about the Great Commission?

Isaiah 56:3-8 - New International Version (NIV)

³ “Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say,
    “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”
And let no eunuch complain,
    “I am only a dry tree.”

⁴ For this is what the Lord says:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
    who choose what pleases me
    and hold fast to my covenant—
⁵ to them I will give within my temple and its walls
    a memorial and a name
    better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
    that will endure forever.
⁶ And foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord
    to minister to him,
to love the name of the Lord,
    and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it
    and who hold fast to my covenant—
⁷ these I will bring to my holy mountain
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
    will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
    a house of prayer for all nations.”
⁸ The Sovereign Lord declares—
    he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gather still others to them
    besides those already gathered.”

Who is not to say “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people” (verse 3)?

Who is not to say “I am only a dry tree” (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why is the promise to the eunuchs in verses 4 and 5 an amazing promise?

In your opinion, why does the promise that the “foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants . . . their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar” represent a seismic shift in temple worship ideas (verses 6 and 7)?

Whose house will be “a house of prayer for all nations” (verse 7)?

Who has the Sovereign Lord already begun to gather (verse 8)?

Who else will the Sovereign Lord gather (verse 8)?

In your opinion, how does understanding the promise of a temple for foreigners and eunuchs in Isaiah 56:3-8 help to understand why Jesus would become upset at the limitations to worship that the money changing and the buying and selling would have represented to the gentiles by having their court taken up with these activities in Matthew 21:12-17?

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

John 17:20-26 – New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹ that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²² I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— ²³ I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

²⁴ “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

²⁵ “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. ²⁶ I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Who is Jesus praying for (verse 20)?

What is the request of Jesus for those He was praying for (verse 21)?

How has Jesus made it possible for His request to be fulfilled (verse 22)?

In your opinion, why will the world know that God sent Jesus and loved Christians because of the unity of Christians (verse 23)?

Where does Jesus want “those you have given to me” to be (verse 24)?

What do those given to Jesus know about the Righteous Father (verse 25)?

Why will Jesus make the Righteous Father known to Christians (verse 26)?

In your opinion, how is the promise to gather those who do not have the right parents or who are flawed and incomplete in Isaiah 56:3-8 become even more wonderful when we understand that all of these who don’t have the right parents or who are flawed and incomplete are included into being one with Jesus and the Righteous Father in the prayer of Jesus in John 17:20-26?

In your opinion, how does the love and sense of oneness that Jesus feels with the Righteous Father and with all who believe in Him as shown in His prayer from John 17:20-26 help us understand the passion that He displayed in Matthew 21:12-17 against the corruption of the place where gentiles could go to worship?

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

    

Philippians 2:5-11 – New International Version (NIV)

⁵ In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

⁶ “Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

⁹ Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
    and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹ and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.”

In what are we to have the same mindset as Christ Jesus (verse 5)?

What nature did Christ Jesus have (verse 6)?

How did Christ Jesus take “the very nature of a servant” (verse 7)?

Where did the humbling and obedience of Christ Jesus take Him (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what is it about the obedience of Christ Jesus that caused God to exalt “him to the highest place” (verse 9)?

How great is the “name of Jesus” (verse 10)?

What will every tongue acknowledge (verse 11)?

In your opinion, how amazing is the request that Jesus makes in John 17:20-26 that “I want those you have given me to be with me where I am” when you consider that “God exalted him to the highest place” in Philippians 2:5-11?

In your opinion, how does the wonderfully all-encompassing prophecy in Isaiah 56:3-8 that “my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations” take on an even more amazing tone when combined with the promise of Philippians 2:5-11 that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord”?

In your opinion, how are the praises of the children in Matthew 21:12-17 that said “Hosanna to the Son of David” like the promise in Philippians 2:5-11 that “every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord”?

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

Next, back to Matthew 21:18 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

March 8, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Donkeys and Children

March 8, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Donkeys and Children

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.”

Donkeys and Children

Matthew 21:1-11 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

⁴ This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

⁵ “Say to Daughter Zion,
    ‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
    and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. ⁸ A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

“Hosanna to the Son of David!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹⁰ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Where did Jesus come to (verse 1)?

What were the two disciples to find (verse 2)?

How were the disciples to respond if “anyone says anything to you” (verse 3)?

Why did this take place (verse 4)?

Who did the king come riding on a donkey to (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why did the disciples place their cloaks on the donkeys for Jesus to sit on (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why did the “very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road” (verse 8)?

Who did the crowds shout “Hosanna” to (verse 9)?

Who did the crowds say was “blessed” (verse 9)?

What did the city of Jerusalem ask (verse 10)?

How did the crowds answer (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 21:1-11 show us about the Great Commission?

Zechariah 9:9-12 - New International Version (NIV)

⁹ “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
    Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
    righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
¹⁰ I will take away the chariots from Ephraim
    and the warhorses from Jerusalem,
    and the battle bow will be broken.
He will proclaim peace to the nations.
    His rule will extend from sea to sea
    and from the River to the ends of the earth.
¹¹ As for you, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
    I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit.
¹² Return to your fortress, you prisoners of hope;
    even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you.”

Who is to rejoice (verse 9)?

Why are they to rejoice (verse 9)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to “take away the chariots from Ephraim and the warhorses from Jerusalem” (verse 10)?

What will “He” proclaim to the nations (verse 10)?

Where will “His rule” extend (verse 10)?

Why will the prisoners be freed from the “waterless pit” (verse 11)?

What will be restored to the “prisoners of hope” (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what does reading Zechariah 9:9-12 allow us to understand about what the great crowds of Matthew 21:1-11 expected of Jesus?

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

Hebrews 9:11-28 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ “But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. ¹² He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. ¹³ The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. ¹⁴ How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

¹⁵ For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

¹⁶ In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, ¹⁷ because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. ¹⁸ This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. ¹⁹ When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. ²⁰ He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.” ²¹ In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. ²² In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

²³ It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. ²⁴ For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. ²⁵ Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. ²⁶ Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. ²⁷ Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, ²⁸ so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

What did Christ come as (verse 11)?

How did Christ enter the “greater and more perfect tabernacle” (verse 12)?

What kind of redemption did He obtain (verse 12)?

What effect does the “blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer” have on those who are ceremonially unclean (verse 13)?

What effect will “the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God” have (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why can Christ, who is “mediator of a new covenant” set those who are called “free from the sins committed under the first covenant” (verse 15)?

What is necessary “in the case of a will” (verse 16)?

When does a will become “in force” (verse 17)?

Who did Moses sprinkle with the blood of calves (verse 19)?

When is there no forgiveness (verse 22)?

In your opinion, why do heavenly things require better sacrifices than copies of heavenly things (verse 23)?

Where is Christ appearing for us (verse 24)?

Who did Christ appear for (verse 26)?

What are people destined to do after they die (verse 27)?

Why will Christ appear a second time (verse 28)?

In your opinion, how does the discussion of the blood of the covenant in Hebrews 9:11-28 help us to understand the complete prophecy of Zechariah 9:9-12 which refers not only to the king entering riding on a donkey, but also says “because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit”?

In your opinion, what is the difference in understanding about who Jesus is that the crowds outside of Jerusalem in Matthew 21:1-11 had in comparison with Paul in Hebrews 9:11-28?

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

 

1 John 3:1-3 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.”

What did the Father lavish on us (verse 1)?

Who shall we be called (verse 1)?

Why does the world not know us (verse 1)?

Who will we be like (verse 2)?

What do those who hope in him do (verse 3)?

In your opinion, how does the promise in 1 John 3:1-3 that we will be like Christ when He appears help us to understand what will happen when He appears a second time as promised in Hebrews 9:11-28?

In your opinion, how does it help us to understand the magnitude of the great the love the Father lavished according to John in 1 John 3:1-3 to understand that the blood of the covenant that Zechariah referred to in Zechariah 9:9-12 was the blood of the king who came riding in on the donkey, the Son of the Father?

In your opinion, how do you put into words your appreciation for Jesus for being the one who heard the “hosannas” as He entered Jerusalem on the donkey in Matthew 21:1-11, the “crucify him” cries a few days later, but still shed His blood so that we can be like Him when He appears a second time according to 1 John 3:1-3?

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

Next, back to Matthew 21:12 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)