Franz Kafka wrote a story entitled “The Hunger Artist.” Professional fasting was a respected, lucrative, and celebrated art. The Hunger Artist was the main attraction. He sat in a cage for forty days without eating or drinking. When the fast ended, his manager made a speech. The band played. A woman led the weakened but triumphant hunger artist out of the cage. But the day came when fasting was no longer understood or appreciated. The hunger artist lost everything and joined the circus to survive. His cage was placed with the animals. He became depressed. No one paid him any attention. One fast went past forty days because his attendants neglected to count the days....

There is a sense in which the first three beatitudes are about humility.  Poverty in spirit is humility toward God.  Mourning is humility toward self.  Meekness is humility toward others.  These opening beatitudes present the foundational aspects of the humility that characterize the blessed. Yet these beatitudes build on one another. To be poor in spirit is to mourn. To mourn is to be meek. These beatitudes also build on one another in the opposite direction. Meekness comes naturally to those who are poor in spirit and mourn their sin. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said, “The man who is truly meek is the man who is amazed that God and man can think of him as well as they do and treat him as well as...

There was a time when churches held weeklong revival services. An evangelist preached sermons to save the lost and sanctify the church. Church members invited the unsaved, unchurched, and unrepentant to the revival. They even had special seating: The Mourners’ Bench. The mourner’s bench was created by John Wesley, the father of Methodism. There are biblical reasons to reject Wesley’s theology and methodology. But his premise was right: contrition is the key to conversion.  The second beatitude clarifies two misunderstandings about the Christian life.  Being a Christian is not about being sad. Matthew 6:16 says, “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.” The hypocrite looked gloomy, assuming this is what it meant...

Matthew 21 begins the account of the final week of the earthly life of Jesus. It is called Holy Week or Passion Week, as it culminates with the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. It begins on Palm Sunday, so called because the crowds placed garments and branches in the path as Jesus rode into Jerusalem. John 12:13 says they were palm branches.  The Triumphal Entry is the first and last time Jesus travels to Jerusalem in Matthew. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. His parents fled to Egypt after his birth. He was raised in Nazareth. His ministry took place in Galilee. The Gospels tell us that Jesus traveled to Jerusalem on several occasions to observe the holy feasts. The events of Holy Week took place during the feast...

The public ministry of Jesus was in its early stages. Large crowds gathered to hear his teachings and see his miracles. But Jesus was not caught up in his fast-growing popularity. He would not let the multitudes distract him from his Father’s business. And he did not want his new disciples to be seduced by the crowds. Matthew 5:1-2 reports: “Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.” What follows is the greatest sermon ever preached. It is the first recorded discourse of Jesus – the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 5-7, Jesus explains the righteous standard for citizenship in the...

The Lord’s Prayer begins with an invocation: “Our Father in heaven.” The remainder of the model prayer consists of petitions to the heavenly Father. The first petition is “Hallowed be your name.” The last petition is “Deliver us from evil.” Prayer is both an act of worship and an act of warfare.  We pray for certain things and against certain things.  It is our prayer that god be exalted, and evil be defeated.  J.I. Packer wrote: “The vision of life in God’s family that we learn from the Lord’s Prayer has three dimensions. It is a life of devotion, of dependence, and of danger.” “Deliver us from evil” is a war cry that acknowledges the pervasive reality of evil, recognizes...

The Lord’s Prayer teaches the heavenly Father can be trusted with all of our needs – past, present, and future. We can pray about present needs: “Give us this day our daily bread.” We can pray about past sins: “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” We can pray about future trials: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” The Model Prayer also teaches us to pray about what we need the most. We need divine provision: “Give us this day our daily bread.” We need divine pardon: “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” We need divine protection: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver...

The Lord’s Prayer begins with God’s glory. The second half focuses on our needs. These personal petitions begin our bodies: “Give us this day our daily bread.” The remaining petitions address our souls: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”Even though our bodies are addressed first, the priority is our souls.  The first concern of the soul is stated in Matthew 6:12: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven debtors.” The first word of this petition is the conjunction “and,” which connects verse 12 to verse 11: “Give us this day our daily bread.” Forgiveness...

The first three petitions of The Lord's Prayer focus on God’s glory: Your name. Your kingdom. Your will. The remaining petitions focus on our needs: Our daily bread. Our debts. Lead us not. Deliver us. This transition does not suggest competing or conflicting priorities in prayer. It is not that we address God’s priorities and then address our priorities. In all of these petitions, God occupies the place of priority. When we pray about God’s name, kingdom, and will, we express devotion to God. When we pray for bread, forgiveness, leadership, and deliverance, we express dependence upon God. When our...

The Lord’s Prayer begins with an invocation: “Our Father in heaven.” Then Jesus teaches seven petitions to the heavenly Father. The first three petitions are God-centered: “Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” The remaining petitions address our personal needs. In a real sense, the first three petitions are synonymous. They are three different ways of asking for the same thing. God’s name is hallowed when God’s kingdom comes. God’s kingdom comes when God’s will is done. This third petition is transitional. God’s name, kingdom, and will are heavenly...

The first line of The Lord’s Prayer teaches us how to approach God in prayer: “Our Father in heaven.” The remainder of the prayer petitions the heavenly Father. The first petition is, “Hallowed be your name.” Sincere prayer is God-centered. Prayer is about what God wants from us before what we want from God. To say that God wants something from us does not mean God needs anything from us. God is self-existence. He does not need our faith. God is holy. He does not need our moral support. God is sovereign. He does not need our permission. God owns...

Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Old Testament references to the throne of God declare the holiness, glory, and sovereignty of God. In Christ, the throne of God is a fountain of grace and mercy. Yet it remains a throne. It is a seat of divine authority. It is the place from which God reigns over heaven and earth. Jesus says: Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.”  In...