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Prepare Your Heart
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Read God’s Word
A Verse for Today
Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
Matthew 22:29 (CSB): “Jesus answered them, ‘You are mistaken, because you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God.'”
Reflecting on God’s Word
The Sadducees were a group of religious leaders who periodically joined forces with the Pharisees in their attempts to publicly humiliate Jesus. We get a glimpse into how condescending they were in Matthew 22:23-28.
They created a ridiculous scenario that included the biblical principle of Levirate marriage (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). In their fictitious story, they said that the oldest of seven brothers married a woman. He died and left his wife a widow without children. So, his second brother married her but also died, leaving her a widow (x2) without children. Finally, after she had married all seven brothers, each of them died (the police should have probably gotten involved), and then she died.
The Sadducees didn’t believe in the resurrection. They didn’t believe there was life after death. So, they thought they had cornered Jesus publicly with their scenario and final question. “In the afterlife, who will she be married to? Will she have seven husbands? Will there be polygamy in Heaven if we are encouraged to marry only one person here on earth?”
As all eyes turned to Jesus, everyone wanted to see how He would respond. Many of them probably sensed that Jesus was boxed into a corner. “How is He going to answer their question?!”
It is always fascinating to listen to how Jesus responded to people who tried to corner Him. He owned His space. He never played defense. He always played offense, and this time was no different.
Matthew 22:29 (CSB): “Jesus answered them, ‘You are mistaken, because you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God.'”
Did you get that? Jesus essentially said: “You guys are supposedly experts in the Bible. But you have to ask such dumb questions because you don’t know your Bibles, and you don’t know how powerful God is.”
It’s easy to sit back and chuckle at the verbal rebuke Jesus gave to the Sadducees. It’s quite another to wonder if He might do the same to you and me.
Do we know God’s Word well enough not to ask dumb questions that any serious Bible student would know the answer to?
Are we spending sufficient time studying God’s Word, or are we lazily relying on others (pastors, teachers) to tell us what it says?
One major application of this story is: “I need to study my Bible so that Jesus would never have to verbally rebuke me for being biblically obtuse.”
Spend Time in Prayer
- Ask God to forgive you for not treasuring His Words in your mind and heart.
- Ask God to help you set aside time every single day to study (not merely read) His Word, to understand it, so that you can believe it and live it.
- Ask God to help you become progressively more proficient in His Word so that you can humbly correct and teach others what God says.
Going Deeper
If you want to dig a little deeper into the how-tos of Bible study, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:
“What is the proper way to study the Bible?”
“What are some different methods of Bible study?”
Sharing
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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)
Matt’s Musings 