What Jesus Did

Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Gentile woman who lived there came to him, pleading, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely."
But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. "Tell her to go away," they said. "She is bothering us with all her begging."

Then Jesus said to the woman, "I was sent only to help God's lost sheep — the people...

 

Then Peter said to Jesus, "Explain to us the parable that says people aren't defiled by what they eat."
"Don't you understand yet?" Jesus asked. "Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. But the words you speak come from the heart — that's what defiles you. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you."


—Matthew...

 

Then the disciples came to him and asked, "Do you realize you offended the Pharisees by what you just said?"
Jesus replied, "Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted, so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch."


—Matthew 15:12-14 NLT

Key Thought​

The powerful implication of these words of Jesus for his followers is immense. The Pharisees were regarded as the most...

 

Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. "Listen," he said, "and try to understand. It's not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth."

—Matthew 15:10-11 NLT

Key Thought​

Wouldn't it be nice if we could make ourselves pure simply by eating the right things? Granted, it sometimes is hard to eat the right things. But it's a lot harder for most of us to say and do the right things.

We have all sorts of problems...

 

[To the Pharisees and teachers of religious law, Jesus said:] "You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,

'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship is a farce,
for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.'"

—Matthew 15:7-9 NLT

Key Thought​

Jesus was sometimes not very subtle. His lack of diplomacy with hypocrisy was founded in the heart of God. In fact, Jesus is very hard on those...

 

[When asked why his disciples didn't do the ceremonial hand washing,] Jesus replied, "And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God? For instance, God says, 'Honor your father and mother,' and 'Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.' But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, 'Sorry, I can't help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.' In this way, you say they don't need to...

 

Some Pharisees and teachers of religious law now arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. They asked him, "Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat."

—Matthew 15:1-2 NLT

Key Thought​

Isn't it interesting how some criticisms come disguised as questions?! "Why do...?" The Pharisees and teachers of the law weren't looking for truth, but looking to set a trap. In fact, most of their questions to Jesus...

 

After [Jesus and the disciples] had crossed the lake, they landed at Gennesaret. When the people recognized Jesus, the news of his arrival spread quickly throughout the whole area, and soon people were bringing all their sick to be healed. They begged him to let the sick touch at least the fringe of his robe, and all who touched him were healed.

—Matthew 14:34-36 NLT

Key Thought​

While Jesus is in a very busy time in his ministry, a time when he wants to focus on the disciples...

 

When [Jesus and Peter] climbed back into the boat [after Jesus rescued Peter from sinking], the wind stopped. Then the disciples worshiped [Jesus]. "You really are the Son of God!" they exclaimed.

—Matthew 14:32-33 NLT

Key Thought​

The ultimate goal of experiencing Jesus' presence and power in our lives is to lead to our praise of him for who he is and what he has done. Rather than simply an adrenaline fix, an emotional wave, or an incredible experience, our service to Jesus and...

 

Then Peter called to [Jesus as he was walking on the water], "Lord, if it's really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water."
"Yes, come," Jesus said.

So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted.

Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. "You have so little faith," Jesus said. "Why did you doubt me?"


—Matthew 14:28-31 NLT...