Matthew 19 – Rules, Regulations and Redemptive Relationships

Pastor Matt Pierson

Matthew: The King and His Kingdom

  1. We are designed with purpose.
  2. We are reminded how Jesus treats the most vulnerable.
  3. We are invited to follow Jesus, not a set of rules.
  4. We are challenged to lay down whatever lies between us and Jesus.

What did God originally intend when He created marriage?

  • Genesis 1:27 & 2:24
  • One man, one woman, in a complementary, intimate and permanent union, under God’s authority.

“Churches…all regard divorce as something like cutting up a living body, as a kind of surgical operation. Some of them think the operation so violent that it cannot be done at all; others admit it as a desperate remedy in extreme cases. They are all agreed that it is more like having both your legs cut off than it is like dissolving a business partnership or even deserting a regiment.” – C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” – Matthew 25:40

“Difficult though this is, we must remember two things. It is not possible for the ethics of the kingdom to be articulated in anything less than ideal terms. And yet the Lord is consistently compassionate to those who fail, repent, and come back to Him for restoration. This passage follows hard on the heels of one that expresses the unbounded mercy and forgiveness of God. So legalistic rigorism is as inappropriate for the Christian community as is casual divorce.” – Michael Green, The Bible Speaks Today

“When we honestly ask ourselves which persons in our lives mean the most to us, we often find it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing, and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares.” – Henri J. Nouwen, Out of Solitude: Three Meditations on the Christian Life

“As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he rose and followed Him.” – Matthew 9:9

“And I want you to know, before we go any further, that Jesus came to free you from religion. To those who have been hauling around a long list of rules. To those who are pretending to be more than they really are. To those who are weighed down with the fear and guilt of religion. To all the fans who are worn out on religion, Jesus invites you to follow Him.” – Kyle Idleman, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus

“The most miserable person in the world is not the person who doesn’t have what he wants, but the person who has what he wants and has found out that it doesn’t make any difference.” – Corrie Ten Boom

“We think that idols are bad things, but that is almost not ever the case. The greater the good, the more likely we are to expect it can satisfy our deepest needs and hopes. Anything can serve as a counterfeit god, especially the very best things in life.” – Timothy Keller, Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope That Matters

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” – Ephesians 4:1-3

“We see Him as the one who heals our hurts and meets our needs. We see Him as the one who takes our sin upon Himself and welcomes us with unimaginable love. We see Him as the one who sees us, even when all others turn away, as the one who welcomes us to learn from Him and pour our meager love out at His feet. We see Him as the one who is the Savior of the world and yet knows us each by name – even if we answer to the most common name in town. We see Him as the one who gathers up our broken hearts and bodies in His arms, and as the only one who has the power to make us whole. We see Him as the one who faced the horror of God’s judgments on the cross, so He could turn His face to us and call us into everlasting life.” – Rebecca McLaughlin, Jesus Through the Eyes of Women

Scroll to Top
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap