Matthew - Week 80

Away With You 

READ 

Matthew 25:41-43 

41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’” 

Matthew 25:41 reveals the purpose of eternal fire. It is prepared by God for the devil and his demons. His demons were fallen angels. There is only one devil but many demons. In this passage, Jesus tells of opportunities people had to minister to others but did not.  

REFLECT 

The devil is a created being and does not have the power of God. Read 1 John 4:4 in this regard. Spend more time thinking about God than the devil. Also read the first two chapters of the book of Job that show the devil can go no further than God allows. 

RESPOND 

Talk with a fellow believer about caring for the needs of others. You cannot help everyone, but you can surely do something for those around you. Although you cannot do all they need, every little bit will help. 

Refused to Help 

READ 

Matthew 25:44-45 

44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’ 45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’” 

People will be surprised to learn they did not have opportunity to do these things for Jesus because He was no longer living among them. His answer is that when they refused to help others they were actually refusing to help Him. 

REFLECT 

Have you considered that helping others is really helping Jesus? 

RESPOND 

When Paul was on the Damascus road he was on the way to persecute Christians when he saw a light from heaven. Read Acts 9:1-6 to see that Jesus considered Paul was really persecuting Him by persecuting believers. 

Eternal Destinations 

READ 

Matthew 25:46 

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” 

This verse is important because some people believe while Christ-followers have eternal life, unbelievers will not have eternal punishment. The word in the original Greek language used the same word for “eternal” in both cases. What a terrible thought this is that loved ones will be sent to eternal punishment for rejecting Jesus as Savior. 

REFLECT 

Pray for people to trust in Jesus as Savior before it is eternally too late. 

RESPOND 

Perhaps it does not seem logical to you that a loving God would send anyone to eternal punishment. Consider what God did in sending His only Son to enter the human race to live with all of its limitations and die on the cross for everyone. It is a better question to ask how a holy God could ever forgive sinners. Romans 3:23-26 tells of this. In Luke 18:13 the tax collector prayed that God would be merciful to him. God has been merciful in sending His Son to die for us. Now the question is whether one will receive what God has done for him or not.  

In Two Days 

READ 

Matthew 26:1-2 

1 When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “As you know, Passover begins in two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” 

Jesus concluded His comments on the Mount of Olives, as recorded in Matthew 24 and 25. Jesus told His disciples the Passover was near when He would be turned over to be crucified. His disciples had believed that the Messiah would come to overthrow the Roman Empire and set up His own kingdom. Although He had talked to them about His death, they didn’t fully grasp it.  

REFLECT 

Think what a sobering statement Jesus’ words must have been to His disciples. 

RESPOND 

Jesus was the Passover lamb and He would be sacrificed during Passover. The Jews were accustomed to sacrificing lambs at Passover. John the Baptist described Jesus as “The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). 

Plots and Plans 

READ 

Matthew 26:3-5 

3 At that same time the leading priests and elders were meeting at the residence of Caiaphas, the high priest, 4 plotting how to capture Jesus secretly and kill him. 5 “But not during the Passover celebration,” they agreed, “or the people may riot.” 

This reveals the background of how the Jewish religious leaders were plotting to arrest and kill Jesus. All males had to attend in Jerusalem for three celebrations (see Exodus 23:14-17). One of these celebrations was Passover. The leaders knew there would be a big crowd there at that time. See John 11:54-56 in this regard. The leaders had to decide on another plan. 

REFLECT 

When reading the Bible, remember that the word “Jews” can refer to the common people, many of whom believed in Jesus. It can also refer to the religious leaders who hated Jesus and wanted to have Him killed. 

RESPOND 

Do you know of people who do not want to have anything to do with religion? You can tell them that Jesus felt the same way because it was the religious leaders who wanted Him killed. Use this opportunity to share with them that “religion” is man’s attempt to reach up to God, and that “Christianity” is God’s attempt to reach mankind by sending His only Son. It’s not about religion; it’s about a relationship by believing in Jesus.