Gospel of Matthew
Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43 Teaching Outline)
Introduction: The December 18, 2001 entry of Our Daily Bread seeks to apply this parable for us. I want to quote it in full in order to illustrate an important issue when seeking to interpret this parable correctly: For 11 years, an official at a Michigan community college impressed fellow workers as a highly qualified…
Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-9; 18-23 Teaching Outline)
Introduction [After having read all of verses 1-23]: I recently read a testimonial from someone who attended the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity. Here is a part of that testimonial: I have, for a long time, been passionate about making the Bible relevant in contemporary culture and talking to people where they are at. So…
Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders (Matthew 7:24-27 Teaching Outline)
Introduction: The Sermon on the Mount, like most sermons today, has both an introduction and a conclusion. The introduction consists of the thought-provoking and heart-penetrating Beatitudes, but the conclusion consists of a simple illustration intended to drive home the crucial choice left to the hearers. And it shows us that we have been brought by Jesus…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Sixth Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: Illustration: “In a Frank and Ernest cartoon the two characters are standing before a priest and Frank asks, ‘How come opportunity knocks…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Fifth Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: When tempted by Satan, Jesus reminded him that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Fourth Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: In our previous examination of the first three petitions of this prayer – that God’s name be hallowed, that His Kingdom come,…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Third Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: Quote: George W. Truett once taught that, “To know the will of God is the greatest knowledge! To do the will of…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Second Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: Illustration: Many centuries ago, and many years after God had led the Israelites into the promised land, there came a time when…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The First Petition
In this post I am continuing a series on the Lord’s Prayer. What follows are my teaching notes on the text in Matthew. I hope the blog’s readers will find it helpful. Introduction: Quote: William Shakespeare once wrote: Good name in man and woman, dear my lord, Is the immediate jewel of their souls: Who…
Jesus’ Model Prayer: The Opening Address
Back in February I posted a teaching outline on Jesus’ model prayer contained in Matthew 6:9-13. In it I presented an overview of the Lord’s Prayer and examined some lessons we could learn from the context and overall content and structure of the prayer. This outline was well received and the post has consistently been in the…