Tuesday September 27

Today is Tuesday, September 27 and we are praying through the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus invites me to come to Him and find rest for my soul, take His yoke upon me and learn from Him, drink from the well of Living Water and be filled, and sit at His feet and hear His voice.

Pause and Pray

My Lord Jesus, in the early moments of the dawning day, I come to You as invited. I come with a quiet spirit, bearing the weary burdens of my soul to rest in the joy of Your presence and abide in the glory of Your love. Amen.

I rejoice in God’s gift of holy scripture and praise Him with the words of Psalm 119.

You are righteous, Lord, and your laws are right. The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy. Psalm 119:137-138

Pause and Pray

The Law of the Old Testament was God’s Revelation to the people of Israel at Sinai. It was the Torah – the first five books of the Hebrew Bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Hebrew canon of the Prophets was originally written on a single scroll, and includes the books of Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Jesus established that there is no contradiction in following both the Old Testament Law and Prophets along with the teachings in the New Testament. The organic relationship between Jesus’ teaching and the Torah is “fulfillment”.

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Matthew 5:17-18

What does Jesus mean when he says he came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets?Jesus came to bring out the whole meaning or complete them. He brings the Old Testament to God’s intended destination. Jesus came to establish the Law and the Prophets in all their fullness. According to John Wesley Jesus came to place in a full and clear view whatever was dark or uncertain in the Old Testament. “To declare the true and full meaning of every part of it, to show the length and breadth, the entire extent of every commandment contained in it and the height and depth, the inconceivable purity and spirituality of it, in all its branches.”*

Ask: How do I understand the continuity between the Old and New Testaments of my Bible?How might God want me to deepen my comprehension of Jesus’ fulfillment of the Old Testament?

Pause and Pray

Holy Lord Jesus, I want to grow in knowledge and understanding. Open the scriptures to me and reveal how You have fulfilled the ancient writings, established God’s moral Law and completed the prophecies preserved in the Old Testament of my Bible. Help me hear God’s word in a new light and open my mind to comprehend the mysteries of the ages through the power of the Holy Spirit. I read Matthew again, listening for the message You have for me today.

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Matthew 5:17-18

Ask: What image, word or phrase stands out to me when I slowly read this passage?What is God trying to say to me through these words of scripture?

Pause and Pray

God is speaking to me about my relationship with the Old Testament. God wants me to understand His perfect rescue plan for humanity fulfilled in His Son Jesus Christ. That amazing rescue plan includes me – the rescue of my soul for all eternity. Maybe God wants me to spend more time in the study of scripture. Perhaps the Holy Spirit wants to guide me to a broader knowledge of salvation. Maybe Jesus is inviting me to sit at His feet and learn. Perhaps God wants me to develop a new appreciation for his Holy Word.

Pause and Pray

Holy Lord Jesus, I invite you to join me in the quiet moments when I study God’s Word. I turn the pages of my Bible with You as my tutor and guide. Open my mind so that I can understand the scriptures as only You are able to do. Help me comprehend the fullness of God’s great plan of salvation for my soul that was fulfilled in You. Amen.

Jesus said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. Luke 24:44-45

*Resources: Sermons on Several Occasions, Volume II – Upon Our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount by John Wesley, edited by William J. Abraham, 2021.

As I leave this time of prayer, I go with a hunger to understand God’s Word and a heart to love and serve the world as Jesus did.

Amen