Matthew 9:18-31 | Everyone has a reputation, and being a person of faith will certainly draw the attention of the people around us. How do people see us? What if we are laughed at? Will we walk by faith even if everyone else thinks we're crazy? Faith, it turns out, always gets the last laugh.

Matthew 9:14-17 | Jesus' disciples did not fast like John's disciples. Jesus made it clear that they would one day, but these good practices would be more fitting after the new birth where they would be truly beneficial.  Are you in a fasting or a feasting season?

"God is One God" was the prevailing revelation of God for centuries. But then whispers begin to emerge of a Son, and this Son has a major part to play in God's Master Plan. What is His name, and what is the name of His Son?!

Matthew 9: 1-13 | Authority is determined not by what title I give myself, but by what obeys me. Jesus walked in God's power and authority, but used it to serve the least of these. Do we walk in the authority He has given us?

Matthew 8:18-34 | Discipleship has a cost, and it can be steep! Have I really considered what following Jesus will cost me personally? What if He leads me into a storm, or in to a graveyard full of demons? Considering this, will I still say yes to His call? 

Matthew 8:1-17 | God is a miraculous God, and Jesus came to reveal the Father. If this is so why are miracles so rare? There is a relationship between faith and our experience of miraculous things. Lord, increase our faith!

Matthew 7:15-29 | We are all mastered by something, and it will either be a spirit of lawlessness or the Spirit of Christ. What we choose for the foundation of our lives will determine the fruit that we bear in the long run.

Matthew 7:7-14 | How does God treat us when we ask Him for things? If the law of sowing and reaping applies to this principle of prayer, then God gives to us in proportion to the way we treat others. Take the narrow way and do the extraordinary thing- be kind to others!

The holy Word of God is entrusted to the church, and we have the precious pearl of the gospel of the Kingdom. We are to share these things with all who will listen, but there are also times when we must choose who is worthy to receive the precious things of God.

Matthew 7:1-6- Jesus did not say, never make  judgments, but rather, "Do not judge". But what's the difference? There are righteous judgments I must make that will help me discern how to handle the precious pearls of God's truth.