When a teacher of the law asks Jesus which commandment is the most important, Jesus answers by quoting the Shema (their daily prayer): to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. He then adds a second command — to love your neighbor as yourself — which cannot be separated from the first. Genuine faith is centered on sacrificial love because that expression of love is God's very nature.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- Why do you think Jesus connects love for God so closely with love for neighbor?

- How have you seen faith practices (like going to church) help you to love? Have you seen faith practices sometimes distract you from loving God or others?

- What might it look like if you were to live this commandment out more fully?

- Prayer: Lord, fill my heart with love for you and help that love overflow to the people around me.

The Sadducees — who deny the resurrection — try to trap Jesus with a complicated hypothetical question about marriage in the afterlife. Jesus exposes their misguided assumption that fails to realize the transformation we will experience. He also corrects their lack of belief in the resurrection by pointing to the writings of Moses that they consider authoritative. There God refers to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the present tense, even though they had died long ago. From the first books of the Bible, death has never been the final word. God has always had the final word!

Sunday's message on Matthew 21:33-46 (parallel to Mark 12:1-12):

https://youtu.be/T8kRTzkIcA0

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- What does this passage reveal about the importance of knowing both Scripture and God’s power (and heart)?

- Why do you think the Sadducees might have struggled to believe in the resurrection?

- How might limiting God to human assumptions affect your faith?

- What hope does the promise of resurrection bring to your understanding of life and death?

- Prayer: God of the living, deepen my understanding of your Word and strengthen my hope in your power to bring life.

It’s easy to believe we’re in charge of our time, our resources, and our future. But what if the story we’re living in belongs to someone else? Jesus tells a parable that challenges our deepest assumptions about control, ownership, and who the story is really about.

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👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n

👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://tinyurl.com/38d4aryd

As Jesus and his disciples travel toward Jerusalem, he again warns them of his coming suffering, death, and resurrection. Despite this sobering news, James and John are more concerned to use this opportunity to further their own ambitions. Jesus patiently teaches them that greatness in God’s kingdom is not about power or status but about humility and service. Jesus invites them and us to join him, explaining that he came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Theology Lab's "Beyond Simple Answers" podcast:

- Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/y3znraf2

- Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/4nv3fka5

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- What do you make of the contrast between Jesus’ upcoming trials vs. the disciples’ desire for status?

- Why do you think the disciples struggled to understand Jesus’ mission?

- How does Jesus redefine greatness and leadership in this passage?

- Where might ambition or recognition shape your motivations more than service?

- Prayer: Servant Lord, transform my heart to seek to serve others rather than to seek recognition.

In what is a very busy and critical time, people bring little children to Jesus. Rather than welcome them, the disciples try to send them away. Instead, Jesus insists on welcoming them and further insists that we must all become like little children if we wish to be with God. But how? In what way should we be like children? It seems that Jesus intends that we wrestle with this question, exploring the ways in which Jesus is inviting us to be the children of God that we are.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- Why do you think the disciples tried to turn the children away?

- In what ways do you think we are to be like children? In what ways do you think we are not to be like children?

- What makes it difficult for you to answer Jesus' call to be more childlike?

- Who in your life might need the kind of welcome and blessing Jesus models here?

- Prayer: Jesus, give me a childlike heart that trusts you and leans on your loving embrace.

The disciples encounter someone who is casting out demons in Jesus' name and they proudly report to Jesus that they shut that man down. Jesus corrects them, teaching them to support and encourage everyone who is honoring Jesus. He also strongly warns against leading anyone away from God and into sin. He even urges radical action, using images of removing anything — even a foot, a hand, or an eye — that might lead us away from faithful obedience.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- Why do you imagine that the disciples were so against another person using Jesus' name?

- Left unchecked, comparison and competition can poison our spiritual lives. Where do you struggle against comparison and competition?

- Jesus uses strong imagery of cutting off a foot, a hand, or plucking out an eye in our fight against sin. What steps might God be inviting you to take today?

- Prayer: Lord, keep me far from pride and sin, honoring you in all I do.

A boy’s father pleads with Jesus to heal his son when Jesus' disciples are unable to help. He asks Jesus, "Help us, if you can." When Jesus questions his apparent lack of faith, the father replies, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” This honest request has become the prayer of many ever since. Jesus invites us in, doubts and all!

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- What do you see in the father's honesty about his doubts? Do you feel free to express your doubts? Why or why not?

- What are the questions or struggles where you might ask Jesus to help your unbelief?

- Why do you think the disciples were unable to cast out the demon?

- How does prayer strengthen dependence on God rather than self-confidence?

- Prayer: Lord, I believe — help my unbelief and teach me to depend on you in prayer.

Jesus heals a blind man, but only partially at first. Why? Shortly after, Peter confesses that Jesus is the Messiah, yet he rebukes Jesus when Jesus explains what it means to be the Messiah. In particular, Jesus lays out the necessity of his impending crucifixion. Peter thus reveals that he can see, but only partially, just like the blind man who needed further healing. Jesus also seeks to restore our vision fully, to see that the cross, to lay down one's life in love, is not the end of life but the path to a full life, now and for eternity.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- What might the two-stage healing teach about spiritual growth and understanding?

- Where do you see partial understanding in your own walk with Christ?

- Why do you think that Peter was resistant to the idea of a suffering Messiah?

- Jesus invites you to lay down your life and take up your cross? In concrete terms, what might that mean for you?

- Prayer: Jesus, open my eyes more fully to who you are and give me the courage to follow where you lead.

Why do some people hear the same words about Jesus and walk away unchanged while others are transformed? If the message is the same, what makes the difference? Maybe the real question isn’t about the seed at all but the condition of the soil.

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👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n

👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://tinyurl.com/38d4aryd

Human traditions and culture can be quite beautiful and valuable, but not if they become an excuse to not love one another. Some of the higher religious authorities travel to see Jesus and when they do, the fixate on how Jesus' disciples fail to follow the tradition of the Pharisees. In a very direct response, Jesus exposes their hypocrisy. He points out that they value their traditions so much that they use them to escape from God's commands. Likewise, our traditions can be quite beautiful and valuable, but they must all be evaluated in the light of God's command to love one another.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

Resources for "New Testament in a Year"

https://www.highrock.org/newtestament

For Reflection:

- Have you experienced human traditions coming into conflict with God's Word? (Perhaps within your church?) How did people handle the conflict between the two?

- There is always a temptation to allow religious practices to become a substitute for religious devotion, or even a mask to cover up disobedience. How might we guard against this temptation, and how might we recognize when it's happening?

- Prayer: Lord, keep me from losing sight of the true heart of religion — to love you and love others.