Posts by Josh Moody
Matthew 12:1-21: A Bruised Reed He Will Not Break
Exodus 10-12, Psalm 27, Matthew 12:1-21, Acts 17:1-15 Matthew 12:1-21: Jesus and his disciples are going for a Sunday afternoon stroll. It’s the Sabbath, literally, and the disciples are hungry. They are walking through grain fields, and so the disciples start to pick the heads of the grain and start to chew it—a simple way…
Read MoreMatthew 11:20-30: Come to Me, and I Will Give You Rest
Exodus 7-9, Psalm 26, Matthew 11:20-30, Acts 16:16-40 Matthew 11:20-30: Now comes some uncomfortable hearing for those who had been following Jesus’ career so far, listened to his teaching, and even witnessed his miracles. These towns in Galilee—Chorazin, Bethsaida, Capernaum—had not repented at Jesus’ presence, teaching or miracles (11:20). How could such a thing…
Read MoreMatthew 11:1-19: Wisdom Justified by Her Deeds
Exodus 4-6; Psalm 25; Matthew 11:1-19; Acts 16:1-15 Matthew 11:1-19: After giving these instructions to his disciples, Jesus himself goes from there to teach and preach in their cities. If we want to train others to do ministry, we need to do ministry ourselves. You cannot sit in an ivory tower telling people what to…
Read MoreMatthew 10:21-42: I Have Not Come to Bring Peace
Exodus 1-3, Psalm 24, Matthew 10:21-42, Acts 15:22-41 Matthew 10:21-42: A passage of stern warnings, but given with strong reasons not to fear nonetheless. First of all, Jesus is a realist. “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master” (10:24). If they treated Jesus like this, then surely we should not expect that they will…
Read MoreA Perspective, a Response, and a Strategy for Our Current Crises
By Dr. Josh Moody Which particular current crisis do we have in mind? Pick one! There are so many, and so many different views of such crises, global, local, personal, that surround us today. What is the right approach to dealing with a time of crisis? First, A Historic Perspective There seems little doubt that…
Read MoreJanuary 26-31, 2025
In the Bible reading plan we are using, the last days of each month are designated as “free days.” January 26-31 then are intended to allow you to catch up on reading you may have missed or to study passages more in depth that intrigued you during the first 25 days of the month. With…
Read MoreMatthew 10:1-20: Mission
Genesis 50, Psalm 23, Matthew 10:1-20, Acts 15:1-21 Matthew 10:1-20: Famously, Jesus now calls the twelve to him (10:1), and then sends the twelve out from him (10:5). The apostles, therefore, are both uniquely called to Christ and uniquely sent out by Christ—“sending” being the root meaning of “apostle” etymologically. They are given a particular…
Read MoreMatthew 9:27-38: Sheep Without a Shepherd
Genesis 49, Psalm 22:12-31, Matthew 9:27-38, Acts 14 Matthew 9:27-38: Jesus continues his ministry of going about healing and saving—while at the same time aware that the culmination of this ministry is at the cross, a culmination that was not yet widely understood (if at all), and so he is careful to ensure that his…
Read MoreMatthew 9:14-26: New Wine
Genesis 48, Psalm 22:1-11, Matthew 9:14-26, Acts 13:26-52 Matthew 9:14-26: First a question from the disciples of John about fasting. Jesus’ disciples are not fasting: why? (9:14). Jesus’ answer is that they are not fasting yet. He is with them, but one day they will fast (9:15). This leads him to a make a more profound…
Read MoreMatthew 9:1-13: Not Righteous, But Sinners
Genesis 46-47, Psalm 21, Matthew 9:1-13, Acts 13:1-25 Matthew 9:1-13: Sin is a word that is rarely used in contemporary culture. We do not “sin”; we make “mistakes”—“my bad,” “whoops.” And when it is something more heinous that we have done, we are rare, if at all, to use terms such as evil, sin, wickedness. Yet when…
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