60IN60 Day 6 - Sat Mar 7

It's Day 6 and we're in Matthew 20.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 34 - How often am I "moved with compassion"?

Help:
- Verses 1-16 - Two possible interpretations: a. This refers to the opening door for the Gentiles to come into the Kingdom after it'd been just the Jews for so long; b. It refers to those who are saved late in life and have little time to serve God.
- Verses 22-23 - They would die for the Kingdom, but that authority had already been granted.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 5 - Fri Mar 6

It's Day 5 and we're in Matthew 19.

As you read, listen for where God wants to speak to you. What jumps out to you? What speaks to situations you're dealing with right now? 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 21 - What's holding you back?  What's holding me back?  For this guy it was his possessions, but it might be something else for us.

Help:
- Verses 1-9 - This is not all the teaching on divorce that Jesus did.
- Verse 12 - This means that some are born without the "equipment" to have sex; some (not so much today, but it happened back then) were made eunuchs by people (like the man who would oversee the king's harem); some choose not to have sex because they feel God is calling them to a single life (this would not involve a physical change like the other two options).
- Verse 17 - This presumably was because the man looked at Jesus as a human teacher.
- Verses 23-26 - This is not saying it's impossible for rich people to be saved, but it is harder.  Why?  They tend to love the things of this world and put their trust in their wealth.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 4 - Thurs Mar 5

It's Day 4 and we're in Matthew 18.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verses 34-35 - These are verses to think about slowly.  If God really feels this way, that's different than most of us think of Him.

Help:
- Verse 10 - This is one of the two New Testament verses that hint at the idea of guardian angels.
- Verses 15-18 - This is the idea of "church discipline."  It's how we are to treat serious sin within the church.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 3 - Wed Mar 4

It's Day 3 and we're in Matthew 17.

If you've got questions about your reading, I love answering those. Feel free to email me. Unless it's something personal, I'll usually anonymously share the question (and answer) in the following day's email so everyone can benefit from it. 

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 20 - How little faith we must have, since we see so little of His power.

Help:
- Verse 4-5 - Peter's mistake was that he should have realized the point of the vision was how great Jesus was, not that all three were equally impressive.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 2 - Tues Mar 3

It's Day 2 and we're in Matthew 16.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 26 - One of my life verses.

Help:
- Verse 4 - The "sign of Jonah" refers to the fact that Jesus was going to be three days to the resurrection, like Jonah was three days in the fish.
- Verses 6, 11-12 - The "leaven" was their hypocrisy.
- Verse 18 - Catholics believe the "this rock" is Peter; Protestants believe it is his confession of Christ.
- Verse 20 - This was largely a timing issue.  He had a timetable in mind.
- Verse 24 - As disciples, we need to be willing to make sacrifices for Him.
- Verse 25 - This means that rather than doing what I want to do, I instead obey the teaching of Christ, believing that obedience to Him will lead to true life.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 1- Mon Mar 2

It's Day 1 and we're in Matthew 15.

There is a little overlap between the two "60IN60" cycles, so we are starting another 60 days because of the way the calendar fell.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 4 - This is a challenging verse for me, because the penalty seems too severe.  This is a part of the Word that I will have to keep wrestling with.

Help:
- Verses 21-28 - It seems harsh that Jesus declines her request.  His mission at this point is exclusively to the lost sheep of Israel.  In other words, He's come to try to win back God's people to God.  Of course, we know that they will reject Him.  But before they do that, He focuses His attention on them.  You can't say yes to everything.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.

60IN60 Day 56 - Sun Mar 1

It's Day 56 and we're in Psalm 22.

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 1 - I appreciate the honesty.

Help:
- Verses 6, 12 - This is poetic imagery.
- Verses 14-18 - Parts of this are prophetic, pointing toward Christ's experience.

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.