Jesus healed a blind and deaf man and everybody wondered if He was the Son of David. The Pharisees weren't having that, so they made up a lie that Jesus was the devil to discredit Him. Jesus pointed out how that theory made no sense since you can't fight against yourself and win. Jesus taught that if you aren't with Him, you're against Him and that if you speak out against Jesus you can be forgiven, but if you speak out against the Holy Spirit you can never be forgiven. Your words show what is in your heart. On Judgement Day we will all answer for all the careless words we have spoken. The Pharisees wanted a sign from heaven. Jesus told them that they wanted a sign because they were evil and didn't believe. Speaking of evil spirits, Jesus taught that when an evil spirit is expelled you need to fill up that space with good stuff, like being filled with the Holy Spirit, or they'll move back in. Jesus called the disciples and anyone who obeys God, His family.
Later, Jesus went to a lake and got in a boat to speak to a large crowd gathered on the shore. He taught them many things using stories. He described the way seeds grow. Some fall on rocks, some fall on shallow soil and sprout but don't live long, some get choked out by other plants and some fall on good soil and make up for the seeds that didn't grow. The disciples asked why He taught with stories. Jesus told them He had explained the secrets of the kingdom of heaven to them but not to others. Then He quoted Isaiah 6:9-10. He told them that God had blessed them with understanding that many prophets and good people really wanted to know but didn't. Then Jesus told them the meaning of the story. Some people hear the message about the kingdom of heaven but don't understand it. Others gladly hear and accept the message, but when life gets hard or the message gets them in trouble, they give up. There are those who hear and accept the message, but get sidetracked with money and the desire to get rich - the message gets choked out. Finally, there are people who understand the message and multiply it.
Jesus told them another story about a farmer with a freshly planted wheat field into which a vandal had come in the night and scattered weed seeds. Nobody knew about the weeds until the plants started to grow. When the farmer asked his servant how the weeds got planted, he answered that it was done by the enemy. The servant asked if he should pull up the weeds. The farmer told him not to because if would pull up wheat with it. They would sort out the weeds at the harvest and burn the weeds and put the grain in the barn.
In another story, Jesus compared the kingdom of heaven to a mustard seed. It is the smallest seed, and grows into a tree that birds can nest in. Also, the kingdom of heaven works like yeast in bread, making the dough rise.
Because Jesus taught with stories, another prophecy came true in Psalm 78:2.
When Jesus went inside, the disciples asked Him to explain the story about the weeds. He told them the Son of Man scattered the good seed. The field is the world, and the good seeds are the people who belong to the kingdom. The weed seeds are those who belong to the devil, the vandal is the devil. The angels are the workers who harvest. Weeds are gathered and burned as at the end of time. Everyone who has done right will be in their Father's kingdom.
For the kingdom of heaven, a person would give anything and everything to have it.
At the end of time angels will separate the good people from the bad just like fishermen do after they pull in their nets.
Every student of the Scriptures who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a person with old and new treasures in their storeroom.
Jesus went back to his hometown and started preaching and teaching, but the people wouldn't hear it. He said that only in his hometown and home is a prophet without honor. So he didn't do any miracles there because the people lacked faith.
Around this time, Herod had heard about Jesus while John the Baptist was in his prison. He was in prison because he told Herod that he shouldn't take his brother's wife. Her name was Herodias, and she tricked Herod into chopping off John's head even though he didn't want to. The head was brought to her daughter on a silver platter as she requested (at her mother's prompting) and she gave it to her mother.
The disciples heard about it and buried John's body and told Jesus.
Tomorrow read Matthew 14:13-17:13
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