Fresh Start Daily

Devo: Matthew 16:21-23

In the previous verses, Jesus commanded Peter for his faith (Matthew 16:13-20). Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ and the Son of the living God. However, in Matthew 16:21-23, Jesus called Peter “Satan”. Jesus told His disciples the things that must happen to Him.

“From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” v. 21

Peter could not believe what he heard from Jesus. He did not want Jesus to suffer so he rebuked Him.

“Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to you!'” v. 22

I think Peter’s reaction was something that us human beings would also have had we been in his position. Of course we would not want Jesus to suffer and be killed. However, his response was not in line with the Scriptures. He also did not submit to the authority over him. Jesus explained why Peter’s reaction was of Satan.

“But He turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.'” v. 23

Take note of the phrases “things of God” and “things of men”. That is a clear contrast. Peter was not mindful of the things of Christ. He was only thinking of physical things. He was not thinking of the purpose of Jesus’ mission. Jesus had to die on the cross.

Just not being mindful of the things of God makes us enemies of God. When we spend too much time on the things of men or things of the world, we do not please the Lord.

Satan took advantage of the fact that Peter was not mindful of the things of God and used him to speak the way he did to Jesus.

“We can be sure that Peter was not aware that he spoke for Satan, just as a moment before he was not aware that he spoke for God. It is often much easier to be a tool of God or of the devil than we want to believe.” enduringword.com

In Matthew 16:17, Jesus said to Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”

Peter was also not aware that God used him to reveal who Jesus is in the previous story. It’s important that we fix our eyes on Jesus so we will not be used by the enemy. It’s important to be mindful of the things of God and not the things of men.

Father God in heaven, help us to always be mindful of You. Help us to always seek You first before doing and saying anything. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Devo: Matthew 16:13-20

Jesus asked His disciples who He is not because He doesn’t know the answer. It is for His disciples to understand who He is.

“Who do men say that I, the Son of Man”, am?” v. 13

The disciples replied, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” v. 14

They gave Him the opinion of others about Him. However, Jesus wanted to know who they think He is so He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” v. 1

Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” v. 16

Jesus praised Peter for his proper declaration of His identity.

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven…” v. 17

It’s amazing that God revealed that truth to and through Peter without him probably realizing it.

“Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.” v. 20

“Before they could preach that Jesus was the Messiah, they had to learn what that meant.” Barclay, enduringword.com

Wow. It’s true that we cannot share God with others if we do not know who He really is. He is more than a prophet. He is the CHRIST and the SON OF THE LIVING GOD. He is the Messiah. He is God Himself.

We have to know God personally before we can share Him with others. It’s important to spend time with Him privately before going public. His question to His disciples is also a question to all of professing believers.

“But who do you say that I am?” v. 15

Who is Jesus to us? Does our life as believers reflect that we know Him? That we belong to Him?

“We answer this question every day by what we believe and do. If we really believe Jesus is who He says He is, it will affect the way that we live.” enduringword.com

The Gentile woman’s faith in this story is really great as Jesus said. Jesus was initially cold towards her and rejected her request but she kept asking God.

“But He answered her not a word.” v. 23

“It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” v. 26

She kept asking because she knew Him and she knew that God could help her. Because of that faith in God, Jesus helped her eventually.

“And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him…” v. 22

“Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, ‘Lord, help me!'” v. 25

“And she said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.'” v. 27

She did not stop until Jesus answered her prayer. Her request was not even for herself but for her daughter. She was a Gentile. She knew that the Jews were special in God’s eyes. She did not debate about Jesus calling her one of the “little dogs”. She accepted what Jesus said but still asked for a blessing despite all of it.

“It was as if she said, ‘Jesus, I understand that the focus of Your ministry is to the Jews – that they have a special place in God’s redemptive plan. Yet I also understand that Your ministry extends beyond the Jewish people, and I want to be part of that extended blessing.'” enduringword.com

She kept insisting and because of that, God honored her faith. Her persistence showed that she believed only Jesus could help her daughter.

“‘O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.’ And her daughter was healed from that very hour.” v. 28

Like the woman in this story, we can cry out to God for help. There are so many wonderful things that touched me in this story.

“Tyre and Sidon were Gentile cities, located some 50 miles (80 kilometers) away.” enduringword.com

“We read of nothing else that Jesus did during this time in Tyre and Sidon. It would seem that His only divine appointment was to meet the need of this woman of faith and her afflicted daughter.” enduringword.com

God is so loving to us. Jesus had no other business in Tyre and Sidon but He went there to minister to this Gentile woman. He traveled to those Gentile cities to help the woman and her daughter.

Are you tired?

With everything that we have to do in life, we oftentimes experience burnout. It’s easy to recuperate from physical exhaustion. We can just sleep and feel better after. It’s the emotional, psychological, and spiritual exhaustion that’s difficult to recover from.

That’s why many people turn to different ways to get better. Others turn to self-help books, to meditation, to medicine, to people, etc. These things help somehow, but it seems that many people do not consider God to help them. People are willing to try everything but God.

God says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

It’s an invitation from God to anyone who is exhausted.

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:29-30

“…learn from Me…”

God wants us to come to Him not only to cast our burdens upon Him but also to learn from Him. God wants us to disciple us.

“…gentle and lowly in heart…”

It shows us God’s character. He is gentle and humble. Does it not feel good to know that God can and will give us rest for our souls? When I read those words, I already felt comforted. I want that kind of rest forever. I want a heart that’s not troubled by the cares of the world. I want that kind of inner peace.

God tells us that we can only have that kind of rest if we go to Him. It’s not something that we can get from this world.

“If your yoke is hard and your burden is heavy, then we can say that it isn’t His yoke or burden, and you aren’t letting Him bear it with you.” enduringword.com

“They should believe that something is wrong if they don’t experience rest for their souls.” enduringword.com

Wow. It’s a painful truth, isn’t it? We continue to feel burdened because we don’t really surrender our cares to God. We need to trust that God will help us carry our burdens. And when we surrender them to God, we need to have faith that He is with us, that He will help us.

If we struggle to believe, we must ask God to help us believe and we must not stop until He answers our prayer. We can ask God anything, and He answers requests that are in line with His will. God wants us to be free from all of our worries and cares. He wants us to be free from our strongholds. He wants us to enjoy complete freedom. He wants us to enjoy true rest.

We won’t be able to worship God fully if worries and fears occupy our hearts and minds. God wants to give us rest.

Dear God, I want the rest that You are offering. Help me carry my burdens. Help me believe that You will help me. Remove my anxieties, worries, and fears. I want to learn from You. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Devo: Matthew 9:1-8

The paralytic was brought to Jesus by his friends. His friends took the roof apart and lowered him down through it because of the crowd.

“When Jesus saw their faith…” v. 2

It was the faith of the paralytic’s friends, not his, that caused Jesus to forgive and heal him. They had faith that Jesus could heal their friend.

This shows us that our circle matters. Do our friends lift us up in prayer when we need it? Do our friends bring us to Jesus? Or do they talk about us behind our back? Do they wish the worst for us?

His friends cared about him so much that they brought him to Jesus. His friends knew that only Jesus could heal him.

“He said to the paralytic, ‘Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.'” v. 2

The paralytic could’ve been depressed because Jesus told him to cheer up.

“Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house. And he arose and departed to his house.” v. 6-7

It’s because of his friends that he was forgiven and healed.

Also, we can see in these verses that Jesus forgave the man first before He healed him. It is because spiritual healing (forgiveness for our sins) is more important than physical healing.

Sometimes God allows diseases and physical disabilities to bring us to Himself. Until we realize that God is all we need, we will never come to Him.

God doesn’t promise that when we come to Him, we will be healed. God is sovereign and He knows what’s best for us.

As a friend, our job is to pray for our friends, to ask God to cover them with His blood because they could be suffering from things that they don’t talk to us about.

In the previous story in chapter 9, we learned that we have to choose our friends carefully because they will help us in our physical snd spiritual journey. However, in this story, God shows us that we also have to befriend sinners.

Here’s a caveat. We have to befriend sinners not to be influenced by them but to influence them for the Lord.

We were sinners before we came to know the Lord, and sometimes even as believers, we are tempted to sin.

When Jesus called Matthew, he was a tax collector. I read from the commentary, enduringword.com, that the Jewish people considered tax collectors before as traitors because they worked for the Roman government. They didn’t have a good reputation.

However, Jesus told him to follow Him. Jesus knew that he was a sinner but Jesus called him to be one of His disciples. We can also see the heart of Matthew here. It says in verse 9 that “he arose and followed Him.” Matthew obeyed God right away. Then, because he obeyed, his friends came to Jesus, too.

“Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples.” v. 10

Eventually, Matthew wrote the gospel of Matthew. ❤️ This is a good reminder because sometimes, us believers tend to hang out only with believers because it’s easy and comfortable. However, we forget to reach out to unbelievers who need our influence so they can also know Jesus and have a personal relationship with Him.

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” vv. 12-13

These are only three verses but they’re very powerful.

“Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?'” v. 22

They obviously have done many amazing, spiritual things. However, spiritual accomplishments mean nothing if we are not personally connected to God. God said,

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” v. 21

We should call on the name of the Lord to be saved. It says in Romans 10:13, “For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'” Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

However, just because someone calls on the name of the Lord doesn’t mean that he is truly saved. Anyone can call on the Lord but not really mean it. Anyone can prophesy, cast out demons, and do wonders in thre name of Jesus.

It can be done for the Lord without really knowing the Lord. It can also be for personal gain.

“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” v. 23

“I never knew you…”

It’s not enough that we know the Lord. We should also be known by Him. A relationship is not a relationship if it is one-sided. There should be a mutual understanding between the two people.

When I heard a similar message before, I cried out to God and asked Him to show me that He knows me. I prayed to Him with that request for three nights in a row and the day after, I received my confirmation. I was laughing and crying at the same time in front of my friend who is also a believer of Jesus Christ. I was elated.

There is a day of judgment. In verse 22, God said, “Many will say to Me in that day…” “…in that day…” refers to Judgment Day. There will be a day where we will stand before God and face His judgment.

On that day, the only thing that will matter is our relationship with God. I remembered the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus visited them. Martha was preoccupied with many things, with serving God, but Mary chose to sit at the feet of Jesus. Martha complained to Jesus about her sister, Mary, who was not helping her. Jesus, however, told Martha that Mary chose the good part. Mary sat at the feet of Jesus to focus on Him, to communicate with Him, to have fellowship with Him.

“And Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.'” – Luke 10:41-42 NKJV

What then is the basis of salvation? It doesn’t mean we should not call on the Lord because we should. It doesn’t mean bot doing anything for God. The basis of salvation is connection to God. We have to check our heart if we are truly connected to Him.

“In the end, there is one basis of salvation; it isn’t mere verbal confession, not “spiritual works,” but knowing Jesus and being known by Him. It is our connection to Him – by the gift of faith that He gives to us – that secures our salvation. Connected to Jesus we are secure; without connection to Him all the miracles and great works prove nothing.” enduringword.com

Matthew 6:1-4

1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.”

I think people are sometimes tempted to give to appear generous and therefore, to be applauded by men–because we all want to appear righteous. We don’t want others to think we are bad.

Recently, my husband asked me about my trip in Vietnam and I willingly shared stories. Then I told him about the alms I tried to give to the man I saw on the street. I just wanted to tell him that the man refused to take the money no matter how I insisted. He pointed to the CCTV camera and said that he wouldn’t be allowed to go back to that spot if he took it. So my mother and I left. My purpose was just to share the story and not for him to think that I am a generous person. In my mind it was okay because he’s my husband and we are one. However, I felt convicted.

God tells us in these verses in Matthew that we should give out of our love for the Lord and care for men and not for people’s applause. When people applaud us, we already receive our reward and we won’t be rewarded by God anymore in heaven. I prefer God’s reward over people’s applause.

If we do it for human recognition, we might as well enjoy their congratulatory remarks because that is all the reward we will get. I always ask God to help me forget the charitable things I do because I don’t want to feel proud about it. I don’t want to even remember it. It’s okay if the people I gave to don’t remember me. The purpose is not for them to remember me but for them to know that God sees them and knows their needs. Everything that we do should be for God’s glory, not ours.

I just memorized 1st Corinthians 10:31 last Wednesday:

“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

Whatever we do should be done for God’s glory. I won’t have anything to give if God doesn’t provide foe me. I wouldn’t give if God doesn’t prompt me to give. It’s all God.

What if other people learn about our giving? It doesn’t mean that we lose our reward in heaven when other people find out about our charitable deeds. What’s important is our motive. Do we do it for the glory of God or for our own selfish desires? God sees beyond our actions. He sees our motives.

Matthew 5:14-16

14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Christians are the light of the world and we should let our light shine so that they will glorify God. God wants us to give, especially to those who are in need.

I thought this passage won’t speak to me anymore because I’ve read this countless times before. However, I am surprised to glean from it anew. I am also grateful because I asked God to help me learn something new and He did answer it.

“But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” v. 28

God is telling us that to lust for a person in his mind is already a sin. However, that does not give us the license to do it. Just because we know that the thought of it is sin doesn’t mean that actually committing the sin won’t be any worse. God hates both.

I like what the enduringword.com commentary said:

“We may not be able to control passing thoughts or feelings, but we certainly do decide where our heart and mind will rest.” enduringword.com

Sometimes temptations or negative thoughts flood our minds but we have to choose not to entertain them. I learned that we can choose not to let it affect us. We have control over our thoughts. It says in 2nd Corinthians chapter 10 verse 5 that we should take our thoughts captive.

“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,” – 2 Corinthians‬ ‭10‬:‭4-5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

And when it’s hard to do, we have to ask God to give us good and godly thoughts, to remind us of His promises for us, to give us strong minds, to fill us with the Holy Spirit.

This passage does not only refer to sexual sin but anything that we lust upon. It can be riches, fame, etc.

“If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.” v. 29-30

We should not take these verses literally. It’s not asking us to maim our bodies so we would sin no more, because even without eyes or hands, we can still sin in the mind. We may not sin physically but we may still commit sin in the mind.

“Mutilation will not serve the purpose; it may prevent the outward act, but it will not extinguish desire.” – Bruce, enduringword.com

Imagine being married to someone who constantly daydreams about someone else. He/She is with you physically but his/her mind is with someone else. He may not necessarily be acting upon the thought but just thinking about another person when you’re married is already adultery. Having an unfaithful spouse is heartbreaking.

I would rather be alone than be with someone who isn’t loyal to me. I won’t force myself to someone who is into someone else. I don’t like that stress in my life.

“The salvation of our souls is to be preferred before all things, be they ever so dear and precious to us; and that if men’s ordinary discretion teacheth them for the preservation of their bodies to cut off a particular member, which would necessarily endanger the whole body, it much more teacheth them to part with any thing which will prejudice the salvation of their souls.” – Poole, enduringword.com