Saturday, July 3, 2021

Matthew 22 Devotional Bible Study by Steve Wilson

Matthew 22

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 

 

“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

 

“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

 

“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

 

11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.

 

13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

 

14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

 

Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar

15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax[a] to Caesar or not?”

 

18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

 

21 “Caesar’s,” they replied.

 

Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

 

22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

 

Marriage at the Resurrection

23 That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 24 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. 27 Finally, the woman died. 28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”

 

29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[b]? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

 

33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

 

The Greatest Commandment

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

 

Whose Son Is the Messiah?

41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

 

“The son of David,” they replied.

 

43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,

 

44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[e]

 

45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” 46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

 

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 22:17 A special tax levied on subject peoples, not on Roman citizens
  2. Matthew 22:32 Exodus 3:6
  3. Matthew 22:37 Deut. 6:5
  4. Matthew 22:39 Lev. 19:18
  5. Matthew 22:44 Psalm 110:1

 

 

What Will Get You Kicked Out of God’s Party?

Matthew 22:1-14

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

 

“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

 

“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

 

“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

 

11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.

 

13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

 

14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

 


The king invites people to a feast, a party, a celebration, but they refuse to come and even mistreat the messengers. The king invites other people, who do come, but one of them isn't wearing proper attire and is kicked out.

 

The King is God, the first people invited are the Israelites, the messengers are the prophets, the second group invited is the Gentiles, and the man removed from the banquet is an unrepentant person.

 

God invites us to enjoy the good things He has for us. He is a good King, who wants to give us good things. He loves us. At the same time, how could He not be offended when we refuse to accept the blessings He has for us?

 

God invites everyone to enjoy His gifts, and ultimately, eternal life with Him. There is only thing required. We must repent. The invitation isn't enough. We also need to properly respond to the invitation. It's like the invitation is an open call for tryouts for a sports team or to act in a play. Anyone can try out for God's Kingdom, but not everyone will be chosen to be in Heaven. Thankfully, God doesn't judge us on our athletic or dramatic abilities, but He does judge us on whether we have truly repented in response to the invitation He's given us.

 

 

What is Caesar’s and What is God’s?

Matthew 22:15-22

15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax[a] to Caesar or not?”

 

18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

 

21 “Caesar’s,” they replied.

 

Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

 

22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

 


The Christian's relationship to government is very simple. We are to humbly submit, just as Christ submitted. In a democracy, we have a say in what government does, but when the vote goes against us, we are still to submit. Give to Caesar what is Caesar's.

 

Whereas we may not like it, paying taxes is not an issue for the Christian because we know that life is more than money. The part of us, the most important of us, that is to be given to God, does not consist merely of money.

 

So, the Christian submits humbly to the government but knows that their loyalty to the government is a minimal part of their life. Their true loyalty is to God. Give to God what is God's. And therefore, if the government asks us to do something contrary to God's commands, then it is our duty to object and disobey the government in favor of obeying God.

 

Give to the government what is the government's (taxes, humble obedience in all matters not contrary to God's will), and to God what is God's (your very self, your first loyalty).

 

 

“You Are in Error”

Matthew 22:23-33

That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 24 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. 27 Finally, the woman died. 28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”

 

29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[b]? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

 

33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

 


Jesus said, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God." How many Christians live this way, to say nothing of non-believers?

 

People who claim to believe in God are often the biggest doubters of His Word. They don't believe the Bible stories, they don't believe miracles still happen, and they don’t believe the Spirit still gives certain spiritual gifts. I believe they are in error because they don't believe the Scriptures or the power of God.

 

As Christians, it is a matter of faith for us to accept God's Word. We don't doubt it, and when we do doubt it, we try our best understand the Scripture better so that we can resolve the doubt.

 

The Scriptures are the only reliable source of information we have about God. Without them, we'd be clueless as to God's true nature. We can't just make up whatever we want about God or decide what we believe in the Scriptures and what we don't. We have to accept the Scriptures as God has given them to us and put our trust both in what He has said and in His invincible, still-active power.

 

 

Loving God Actively

Matthew 23:34-40

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

 


Loving God and loving your fellow humans. That's what it's all about. But what is love?

 

Love is a verb, an action, not simply an emotion. It’s something you do, something you put effort into. You can’t put your Christian life on autopilot and expect anyone to believe you when you say you love God. What are you doing to express your love for God? Are you studying and praying and practicing spiritual disciplines to draw closer to Him? Are you serving Him with your time and energy and money to tell Him you love Him?

 

The neat thing is that these two greatest commandments aren’t two separate commandments at all. When we love God actively, it comes naturally to us to love other people. It’s part of our love relationship with Him to teach us how to love others. When we love God, His love flows out of us to the people around us.

 

Do yourself a favor today and ask the Spirit, “How can I love the Father with my heart today? How can I love Him with my soul? How can I love Him with my mind? How can I love Him with my strength?” Pause between each question and listen for Him to answer you.

 

 

Are You Questioning Him?

Matthew 22:41-46

41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

 

“The son of David,” they replied.

 

43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,

 

44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[e]

 

45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” 46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

 

Jesus questioning and stumping the Pharisees proves two things. 1) Jesus is greater than any human could ever be, even the beloved King David. 2) As the Pharisees discovered, we don't need to question Jesus. We can ask questions of Jesus, but we don't get to question Him. He is wiser than us, and He is above all of us. It is not our place to question Him but to trust Him.

 


In what ways can you honor Jesus more highly than the other people you might respect?

 

In what areas do you need to trust Him more rather than questioning Him?

 

 

 

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