LIVING FOR JESUS --- Daily Devotional
April 18 / Day 50
The Jesus Questions
JQ#10 — The question: “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29a) doesn’t seem relative to our lifestyles of iPads and Smartphones, besides no one sells sparrows any more and certainly no business man would present a product that costs a “penny”. So the question we must ask of JQ#10 is “Why was the simple question asked in the first place?” Therein lies the answer, and the question only makes sense if we look at the circumstances surrounding both the question and the one who is asking it. The first consideration is “who” is asking the question and the answer is all the way back in Matthew 10:5 as we read, “These twelve (disciples) JESUS sent out and commanded them saying…”. In my Scofield Red-Letter Edition all the words of Jesus is in Red Letters and in this passage (or context) preceding JQ#10 about the two sparrows and a copper coin, the text is all Red Letters starting at the end of verse 5 and is Red up to verse 29 where Jesus asked this question of the sparrows and copper coin. Not only is the question asked by Jesus but we must consider that before the question He has “commanded” His hand picked disciples as He “sent [the disciples] out” to share with the world that “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 10:7) Contained in verses 5-28 of this set of commands Jesus is giving His disciples to share about the “kingdom of heaven being at hand” is (1) “heal the sick (2) cleanse the lepers (3) raise the dead (4) cast out demons” then Jesus warns them (5) they “are sheep in the midst of wolves (6) to be wise as serpents (7) beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils (8) they will scourge you in their synagogues (9) brother will deliver up brother to death” and Jesus warned them that His disciples will (10) “be hated by all for My names sake”. These serious warnings and commands do not seem to fit with the simple question about two sparrows and a copper coin and especially when we consider that the last phrase Jesus used just before asking the sparrow and coin question was “…able to destroy both body and soul in hell.”! Considering the context before the question gives much more weight to the question, especially since the question was asked by Jesus in the process of teaching His disciples how to share with “the lost sheep” that the “kingdom of heaven is at hand” and in His instructions to His disciples He talks of life, death, betrayal, heaven, and hell and the destruction of “both soul and body” which makes the sparrow and coin question jump out and grab our attention which is most probably the exact affect Jesus intended for the disciples and for us! The lesson Jesus is teaching with the simple question of sparrows has great kingdom impact and Jesus takes a very serious topic and asks a simple question that anyone can answer in order to show us that the kingdom of heaven is within everyone’s grasp! If Jesus was teaching His disciples how to teach “lost sheep” about the kingdom of heaven and how to address their eternal souls then we should take the sparrow and coin question very serious and honestly answer this Jesus question for if Jesus is talking about such serious issues as eternal life and death, lost sheep, and destruction of our souls then His question deserves an honest answer! Let Jesus and the Holy Spirit teach us the lesson He has intended. Remember Jesus wants a personal relationship with us so in order to build an intimate relationship don’t You think an honest question asked with the best of intentions should be answered in like manner?
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