Matthew (Written)

Friday, 17 January 2025

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Matthew 6:25

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“Through this, I say to you, not you disquiet your soul – what you may eat and what you may drink, nor your body – what you may don. Not more, it is, the soul the food and the body the apparel?” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus spoke of the unrealistic nature of serving two masters. Now, still speaking in the same general context, He says, “Through this, I say to you, not you disquiet your soul.”

Jesus uses the verb merimnaó, disquiet. It is derived from the noun merimna, signifying care, worry, anxiety, etc. Thus, the verb signifies the act of such things as being anxious, worrying, etc. The single word disquiet gives the proper sense. It would be comparable to saying, “Don’t get your soul all riled up over this.” Next, He tells what to not be disquieted over, saying, “what you may eat and what you may drink.”

How do these words fit the context of serving two masters? The answer is that if one is serving money, meaning he is seeking earthly treasure, he will naturally worry about his food and drink. It doesn’t matter how rich one becomes, he learns to live at that level of wealth. For a millionaire to decrease in wealth by a dollar is more painful than for a poor person who has nothing to lose.

The poor saved person has to trust in God for his daily needs, whereas the wealthy millionaire trusts in his riches to provide them. He is serving the master mammon. In the case of food and drink, the poor person will be willing to eat whatever comes his way, whether off the tree or off the ground.

He is satisfied with the nourishment. On the other hand, the rich person would not dare to eat something without it being washed, properly sliced, laid out in a nice pattern on a plate, and set with the appropriate utensils. He cares less about the nourishment than the setting in which it is provided. He forgets that the food is ultimately being eaten for its nutrients, regardless of how it is obtained and set forth. Continuing on, Jesus next says, “nor your body – what you may don.”

This includes another new word, enduó, to put on clothing. It is derived from en, in, and dunó, to sink. Thus, one gets the sense of sinking into a garment. Therefore, it is to don one’s clothing. One can see the etymological connection to our modern words endue and endow.

The same truth exists with wearing apparel as it is with eating and drinking. A rich person will worry about every thread being perfect, keeping the garment perfect, and having lots of garments that he anxiously must choose from to impress others.

On the other hand, a poor person may have just one garment. It may be torn, filthy, stinky, etc. When it rips, he will hand mend it, not caring what type of stitch he uses or what color thread was obtained to do the repair. He is grateful for the blue thread on his brown garment, whereas the rich man would be in a fit if the seamstress did such a thing.

He may yell at her, threaten her in some way, and go home skulking that his beautiful garment was treated so poorly. He may toss and turn all night about the situation. On the other hand, the poor man will sleep sweetly in his stinky old rags.

Jesus then says, “Not more, it is, the soul the food and the body the apparel?” The answer is obvious, it doesn’t matter what kind of food you eat or what type of garments you wear. They don’t make the person. Each is a temporary part of his existence that will pass away in due time.

Life application: Of the new word enduma, apparel, a word derived from enduó, noted above, Strong’s Lexicon says –

“In the ancient Greco-Roman world, clothing was an important indicator of social status, occupation, and identity. Garments could signify wealth, authority, or religious devotion. In Jewish culture, clothing also had religious significance, with specific garments prescribed for priests and other religious functions.”

Nothing has changed. The quest for wearing the best clothing is the quest for popularity, fame, a following on social media, etc. In churches, priests and bishops are robed in super special cassocks that are highlighted with ratchets. On their heads, they wear big poofy, pointed miters, etc.

These and other garments supposedly set them off as pious men of God filled with super religiosity. With the ending of the Mosaic Law, there is nothing prescribed in Scripture to physically set a pastor, priest, or preacher off from the rest of the congregation. And yet, in order to set these people apart, they are given these garments.

Unfortunately, as has been seen throughout history, such garments often adorn people whose hearts are far from God. They are money grubbers, perverts, predators, and highly arrogant in their demeanor.

The exquisite garments of the social elite are often lipstick on pigs. They adorn people whose hearts are self-centered and filled with pride and haughtiness. But in the masses of people who just live their lives quietly in regular clothing and who humbly come before the Lord with their requests for the meeting of their daily needs, there is fellowship and closeness with God.

Who has the better standing? The answer is obvious. Be content with your station in life. Improve it if you can, but don’t fret over what you don’t have. Through Jesus, the Lord has given you all you need for an eternity of delight in His presence.

Lord God, we come before You with thanks for the many blessings of this life. You give us food to satisfy our bodies, You provide flowers on our path as we walk, and You give us rain, sunshine, cool breezes, and little puppies. How good You are to us, O God. Amen.

Thursday, 16 January 2025

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:24

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“None, he is able, to serve two lords. Or – for he will detest the one and he will love the other. Or – he will enclasp one, and the other he will disesteem. Not you are able to serve God and mammon” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus noted that when your eye is bad, your whole body will be filled with darkness. He further exclaimed how great that darkness will be. Continuing on, He next says, “None, he is able, to serve two lords.”

The word is douleuó. It signifies bondage or slavery. It refers to the service of such a person. To think that one slave could have two masters whom he served is out of the question. This is both from a standpoint of practicality as well as fealty. In such a case, Jesus next says, “Or – for he will detest the one and he will love the other.”

His words again explain the matter of storing up treasures, whether on earth or in heaven. A slave will adhere to one master and reject the other. But if they are both his master, it would cause a real conflict for him, one that would come with insurmountable problems.

Such is the case with storing up wealth. If one is trying to store up treasures both on earth and in heaven, he will place his affections on one over the other. It is the inevitable result of divided allegiances. To reconfirm what He just said, Jesus next restates the matter, this time placing the positive first, followed by the negative, saying, “Or – he will enclasp one, and the other he will disesteem.”

The first word, antechó, translated as enclasp, means to cling to, hold firmly, or hold against. One can see someone embracing his favored master. The second word kataphroneó, translated as disesteem, gives the sense of despising or scorning. He will look down on the unfavored master and even actively insult him. It is the word the author of Hebrews uses when describing Jesus’ attitude towards the trial He faced in His passion –

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ² looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising [kataphroneó] the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1, 2

Jesus embraced doing His Father’s will, despising the shame that He had to face in order to do as the Father sent Him to do. Jesus says that not having this attitude is what it is like when one tries to serve two masters. To fully confirm this as a precept, He next says, “Not you are able to serve God and mammon.”

HELPS Word Studies defines mammon as a Semitic term for “the treasure a person trusts in.” Thayer’s Lexicon associates it with the Hebrew word aman, to trust. When one places his trust in wealth, that is where his allegiance will be. As such, when serving mammon, a person will not trust God. Likewise, when one trusts the eternal God, the riches of this life will be understood for what they truly are, meaning temporary and fleeting.

Life application: As has been noted before, there is nothing wrong with having wealth. In fact, when one possesses wealth, it should be considered a blessing from God. However, the opposite is not to be considered true. When someone is not wealthy, it does not mean that God doesn’t favor them.

That attitude is a trap that too many fall into. Just because someone receives a blessing, such as finding a large gold nugget on the side of the road, it doesn’t mean God loves him more than the person walking with him who found nothing. It was simply a blessing that God laid out in His creation, and the person to the right happened to be there to find it.

Suppose two people started their own roofing businesses. They both start on a similar level with the same existing conditions. However, when one of them gets his first job, the home owner happens to be a very influential person. The roofer does a good job and the house owner uses his influence to recommend this new roofer to many people. He becomes successful and wealthy.

On the other hand, the second roofer gets his first job with a plumber. He does a job just as well as the first roofer, but the plumber doesn’t have any real influence. Likewise, all the others who hire him over the years are just regular Joe’s. He never gets the big contracts or the recognition that the other roofer did, even though he has faithfully done comparable work.

The first roofer received a blessing in life that changed the course of his company. Was it really his business prowess or just a grace that came upon him apart from himself? The answer is obvious. Who will each give their credit to for what they have? Seeing how people respond to the incidents in life that happen to them will show where their true loyalties lie.

In the end, no matter how little or much we are blessed in this life, we should give honor, thanks, credit, and glory to God for what we do have. This is how we will earn our rewards in heaven. Faith is the key. When we demonstrate faith, God will be pleased to reward us accordingly.

Lord God Almighty, our days are numbered and You have seen them all before the first came to pass. But we are living in the stream of time, unknowing of what lies ahead. Help us to have faith in You during this walk, understanding that You are always there with us, carrying us along until the day we stand before You for our rewards because of trust in what Jesus has done. Amen.

Wednesday, 15 January 2025

But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! Matthew 6:23

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“And if your eye, it may be evil, all your body – it will be benighted. Therefore, if the light, in you it is darkness, the darkness – how much” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus noted that the lamp of the body is the eye. A person with an unblurred eye will have a body full of light. On the contrary, He next says, “And if your eye, it may be evil.”

In this instance, having an evil eye must be the opposite of unblurred, which is the context of the previous verse. Instead of singleness of vision, it would be someone who looks at the world in a twisted or distorted way. From there, that information is then sent into the person with the result that “all your body – it will be benighted.”

The adjective skoteinos is used. It is derived from skotos, darkness. Thus, it is something that has become darkened. The word benighted carries this exact meaning. How can someone who perceives the world with an unfocused (evil) eye be a light to anyone? With evil information coming in, there will only be resulting darkness. As such, Jesus continues with, “Therefore, if the light in you it is darkness.”

The word light is referring to the moral nature. The person’s view of the world is corrupt and evil. It is a morally darkened state that feeds the person. As long as he is feeding on the things of this world, there will only be worldly morals to guide him. An understanding of the ways of God will be marred and imperfect to whatever degree his focus allows. 1 John 1:5 says –

“This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.”

Without a heavenly, God-centered, perspective, there will be a doubling of one’s vision. There will be no singleness, meaning clarity. And the way to obtain a proper understanding of God is found in only one place. In the next chapter, John says, while speaking of Jesus –

“Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.” 1 John 2:8

Jesus Christ is what allows for clarity of vision concerning God. Without Him, our understanding of God will be imperfect. With darkness as one’s light, Jesus next says, “the darkness – how much!”

Pharaoh had rejected the light of God time and again. He had seen the miracles, signs, and wonders the Lord performed through the hand of Moses. In an attempt to wake him up to the reality of his darkness, the Lord demonstrated just how dark a world without light is –

“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt.’ ²² So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. ²³ They did not see one another; nor did anyone rise from his place for three days. But all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.” Exodus 10:21-23

The more one rejects the light of God, the more darkened his state will be. The Lord demonstrated this to Pharaoh, but he refused to acknowledge his own evil eye and turn from it.

Life application: One of the doctrines of Calvinism teaches that man is so corrupt he cannot respond to the gospel without first being regenerated. To justify this, Calvinism teaches that Jesus’ words about being born again in John 3:16 refers to God’s regeneration which then allows a person to understand his corrupt state and turn from it to God through Jesus. Only after this regeneration can he then believe the gospel and be saved.

This is based on a faulty understanding of John 6:44 –

“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.”

The problem with their Calvinist interpretation is that it takes the words of John 6 out of their intended context. John 5 spoke of the word of God, meaning Scripture, being the means of pointing Israel to Jesus. He told them as much –

“For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. ⁴⁷ But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” John 5:46, 47

In rejecting this revealed light of God, they were not drawn to the Father. Others who knew the word, saw that it pointed to Jesus, and turned to Jesus –

“Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’” John 1:45

The problem with Calvinism is that it dismisses the obvious, meaning that God is drawing man to Himself through Scripture. The amount of darkness in a person is what results in his rejection of what God has set forth. Those who look with clarity of vision will see what is revealed in God’s light and pursue it

The process has nothing to do with being regenerated in order to believe, something the Bible does not teach. The process involves a willingness to look clearly at what God has revealed and then step into that light.

‘“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.’ ³³ This He said, signifying by what death He would die.” John 12:32, 33

Jesus, as is revealed in Scripture, is the light of God. His cross and resurrection have validated His work. This is what draws men to Him. But they must be willing to believe. Calvinism is a failed theology because it denies the free will nature of man. God in Christ has done the work. It is up to each person to look to the cross and either accept or reject this truth.

Lord God, thank You for Jesus Christ our Lord. He is the Light of the world who allows us to see with singleness of vision. When we look to Him we see all of Your perfection on full display. May we fix our eyes on Jesus all the days of our lives. Amen.

Tuesday, 14 January 2025

“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. Matthew 6:22

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“The lamp of the body, it is the eye. Therefore, if your eye, it may be unblurred, your whole body – it will be lustrous” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus finished His thoughts about earthly treasures as opposed to heavenly treasures. He now provides a general precept concerning the issue of moral clarity. He does this by beginning with the words, “The lamp of the body.”

A lamp is something that provides illumination, not the light itself. Some versions, not understanding the analogy, say, “The light of the body.” Unless they are using the word light as a synonym for lamp, the metaphor is faulty. The thing that provides illumination to the body, according to Jesus’ next words, “it is the eye.”

A lamp is used to search out things in the darkness. It is also used to provide illumination to the one who has it. One may have a good lamp that illuminates everything. Or the lamp may provide any amount of light, even to a sliver that illuminates almost nothing.

The eye (the lamp) is what sees the world around us and provides that information (the light) to the mind, where it is processed. From there, the mind and body react to what has been taken in. In Scripture, light is that which is good. It is particularly used as a metaphor for moral goodness. That is then contrasted to darkness, which includes wrong thinking, moral impurity, etc.

When the eye, which is equated to a lamp, focuses on that which is good, there will be a result. The more focused it is, the greater the result. As such, Jesus continues with, “Therefore, if your eye, it may be unblurred.”

The Greek word is haplous. It is found only here and in Luke 11:34 in verses parallel to this account in Matthew. The word means “without folds” and, thus, single. It is the antonym of the Greek diplous, which means double. Literally, it signifies uncompounded or single.

Thus, there is a sense of simplicity in the word. There is nothing complicated or obscured. Therefore, the word unblurred gives a sense in regard to the eye as well as a state of morality. In such a state, meaning having a lamp that is unblurred, “your whole body – it will be lustrous.”

The word is phóteinos. It is that which is brilliant, meaning shining. In this case, the adjective lustrous gets the sense. It signifies reflecting light evenly and efficiently without glitter or sparkle. As such, it is not blurred light, but even and shining. The things one focuses on are what provide light to the body through the lamp, the eye.

If one focuses on that which is morally impure, meaning that which is darkened, that is what the body will respond to. The eye will take that in and then provide blurred illumination to the body. If one focuses on what is good, meaning that which is single and without impurity, the eye will sense that and send light to the body, thus it will be lustrous.

Life application: Jesus just got done speaking about earthly treasures as opposed to heavenly treasures. There is no reason to assume He has completely left that thought. Rather, He is saying that if we focus on earthly treasures, we will not be providing ourselves with moral purity.

Our thoughts will be corrupted, and we will have no light to pursue that which is heavenly or to be lustrous in ourselves. The saying, “You are what you eat” gets the point across. Paul says elsewhere, “Do all things without complaining and disputing, ¹⁵ that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:14, 15).

If the things we focus on are morally impure, we will not have the light coming to us to make us lustrous. But Paul says we are to shine as lights in the world. How can we do that while focusing on the world and not on the heavenly? In storing up heavenly treasures, we will then be able to reflect what has come into us in the way of light.

Read your Bible, look at what is good and morally right, consider Jesus, live in faith, etc. These things will lead us to true heavenly treasure and allow us to then shine as lights in the world.

Glorious God, help us to focus on that which is good, honorable, and glorifying of You. May we consider Jesus and His perfection and then strive to emulate Him. He walked among the wicked, and His eyes saw their deeds, but He remained pure and holy. Help us to be this way as well when we interact with this fallen world. In turn, we can then shine as lights to those who so desperately need it. Amen.

Monday, 13 January 2025

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“For where your treasure, it is, there also your heart, it will be” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus spoke of amassing treasures in heaven, noting that earthly treasures can be stolen or eaten up. With that remembered, He next says, “For where your treasure, it is, there also your heart, it will be.”

This is a link right back to the book of Joshua and the story Achan. He was fixated on earthly treasure, and that is where his heart was. It cost him everything –

“And Achan answered Joshua and said, ‘Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it.’
²² So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver under it. ²³ And they took them from the midst of the tent, brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. ²⁴ Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the garment, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and they brought them to the Valley of Achor. ²⁵ And Joshua said, ‘Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day.’ So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.
²⁶ Then they raised over him a great heap of stones, still there to this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of His anger. Therefore the name of that place has been called the Valley of Achor to this day.” Joshua 7: 20-26

On the other hand David had great wealth, but it did not possess him. Instead, he was a man of faith, and his heart was set on the Lord. The few times he is noted as having failed the Lord, it also notes that his heart was contrite, and he mourned over his blunders. David’s treasure, above all else, was the Lord, and that is where his heart also was –

“Furthermore King David said to all the assembly: ‘My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced; and the work is great, because the temple is not for man but for the Lord God. ² Now for the house of my God I have prepared with all my might: gold for things to be made of gold, silver for things of silver, bronze for things of bronze, iron for things of iron, wood for things of wood, onyx stones, stones to be set, glistening stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and marble slabs in abundance. ³ Moreover, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, my own special treasure of gold and silver: ⁴ three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses; ⁵ the gold for things of gold and the silver for things of silver, and for all kinds of work to be done by the hands of craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the Lord?’” 1 Chronicles 29:1-5

Life application: There is nothing wrong with possessing wealth or protecting that wealth for the future. In fact, Proverbs says –

“A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.” Proverbs 13:22

One cannot save up for his children’s children if he doesn’t possess wealth to some degree. The point of the Bible’s words concerning this matter is essentially, “Are you master over wealth, or is your wealth master over you.”

Be wise concerning earning and saving, but also let your heart be directed to the Lord above all else.

Heavenly Father, help us to be responsible with the blessings You have bestowed upon us. If we squander what we have, it shows that our priorities were not directed toward You in the first place. Instead, we carelessly handled Your blessing upon us. At the same time, may we never let our possessions possess us. May You always be our hearts’ desire. Amen.