Dig In:
Dig Deeper:
Remember the focus from yesterday: Christ's followers must change - let go of the lies of this world - and have an implicit, child-like trust in Him.
v1-12 - Jesus presents a very hard teaching on divorce. For more on how to properly interpret and apply these tough words, see last year's post.
v13-15 - Once again, Jesus points to innocent, trusting children as the model citizens of the Kingdom of heaven.
v16-30 - Jesus demonstrates that saving grace enables a person to fully turn away from the world and follow Christ, and that since people are enabled by grace to do this, they are obligated to do this.
Today we're going to focus on v23-24:
(23) Then Jesus said to his disciples,
“Truly I tell you, it is hard
for someone who is rich
to enter the kingdom of heaven.
(24) Again I tell you,
it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle
than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
This short video will help make Jesus' point clear:
The moral of the story? Let go of the sticks in your life that are keeping you from fully entering into the Kingdom of Heaven
OLD TESTAMENT REFERENCE:
Proverbs 11:28
Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.
Discuss:
Use the comment box below to discuss one or more of these questions:
EYE FOR DETAIL— Why were the little children brought to Jesus (v13)?
Why was the rich man's first question to Jesus fundamentally flawed (v16)?
Follow the AAA Prayer Pattern:
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, with whom all things are possible (v26)
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will let go of the 'sticks' in your life and instead strive to be first in the Kingdom of Heaven, not on earth (v30)
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
