So is the virgin birth that important? Can a person believe in Jesus without acknowledging it? I believe the virgin birth is important four at least four reasons. First, it made possible for Jesus to be truly human, yet without sin. I affirm that the Scripture teaches that we are all sinners by nature and…
Category: Matthew
The Virgin Birth of Jesus
I am blessed to be the father of three children. One of the things that made fatherhood special for me was being present for the birth of each one. Each birth was fascinating—even miraculous! I was there, and have a basic understanding of biology. But my awareness of science in no way diminishes the sense…
Jesus’ Family Tree
Last week I took some time to investigate my family tree. My great grandfather, Frank, came to America from Baden, Germany, in 1869. After some time in St. Louis, he settled in Clark County, Missouri. He was granted U.S. Citizenship in 1890, at the age of 21. What was interesting about his story was that…
Who is Jesus?
This is the record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham (Matthew 1:1, NLT). Imagine you are minding your own business and a complete and total stranger asked you a question. Not something you would expect, like “What time is it?” or “Could you give me directions to…
Meet Matthew
Last year my daughter stood in line for 90 minutes to purchase an autographed copy of Dad is Fat by Jim Gaffigan for me for Father’s Day. There’s something about meeting the author in person to gain a little insight to the content between the covers. So what can we learn about Matthew, the author?…
The Gospel According to Matthew
What do the following phrases have in common? Don’t cast your pearls before swine. He’s the salt of the earth. She’s been burning the midnight oil. He waited until the 11th hour. Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing. It’s the blind leading the blind. The left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing….
Binding and Loosing
Last weekend I preached a passage that I have preached as frequently as any I have preached in my ministry, Matthew 16:13-19. It is very familiar, and my guess is that anyone who has attended church for any length of time at all has heard a sermon from this text. The great thing about the…
Hidden Treasure
We are unapologetically fascinated by treasure. We attend movies such as The DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons, the National Treasure Movies, Indiana Jones Series and Pirates of the Caribbean that captivate our imaginations and foster a spirit of discovering treasure of incredible worth. From the archeologist to the modern day treasure hunter to the Saturday…
Taking Over
The twin parables of the Mustard Seed and the Leaven, found in Matthew 13:31-33, describe the nature of the Kingdom of God. What is the nature of the Kingdom? 1. The Nature of the Kingdom is UnassumingThe initial appearances of the kingdom seem small and insignificant, but result in something large and significant. The seed…
The Wheat and the Weeds
Anyone who has observed lawns and landscaping is well aware of the ongoing turf battle with weeds. When we moved to Arkansas, we bought a house that had been unoccupied for two years. In a cost cutting move, the builder chose to lay sod around the structure of the house and to seed the rest…