1 "
Beware the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.": leaven being quite literally, that which raises; the ways of the Pharisees. To partake in the ways of the Pharisees is to filled and raised with their leaven. See also: fake-christian; holier-than-thou; hypocrite.
2
"For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.": Those sins which you hold in the dark, closest to your heart, will be uncovered for all to see. So, confess your sins, first to God, then to trusted others, or others who also face the same struggle.
3
"Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.": This is an explanation for 12:2; see previous.
4 "
And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.": Do not fear anything of the world. For all men will die. Fear only the Lord God Omnipotent. In prayer, ask the Lord to teach you fear of Him.
5 "
But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed [you], has the power to cast [you] into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!" : Explanation for 12:4; see previous.
6 "
Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God." : The Heavenly Father knows all things on the earth. He knows how much the sparrows are sold for, how much each grain of rice, or head of wheat goes for. Thus, you will NOT be forsaken, nor forgotten by Yahuwah.
7 "
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows." : Jesus explains that God knows all things. Even every hair currently on your head, and every hair you have ever shed. The Lord even knows the number of every skin cell your body has ever created.
8 "
Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God." : If you proclaim to the multitudes that you follow the Christ, Jesus of Nazareth Himself will vouch for you to the multitudes of heaven.
9 "
But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God." : The Lord God Omnipotent set the Christ, His Son, to be the gatekeeper for the kingdom of heaven. If you refuse to acknowledge Jesus the Christ as the Messiah you will be denied access to heaven. For the Christ is the embodiment of the New Covenant that was ordained to come, by God, in the Old Testament.
10 "
And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven." : If any person denies that Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, is the Messiah. They still have a chance to repent and gain access to heaven. Note: [I myself used to struggle with the concept of Jesus of Nazareth as the embodiment of God on earth. God then showed be the Christ's true name, Immanuel (or Emmanuel). Immanuel is translated as God-with-us. Then I understood, and repented.]
11-12 "
Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say." : A time will come when those who profess their faith for God-through-Christ will be taken, imprisoned both legally and illegally (this is why man's laws are arbitrary). Do not fear for your life, nor what it is you will say. For the Lord God Omnipotent, and His Holy Spirit will prepare your defense on that day. In the hour, they will make the case for you, through your very own tongue. Note: [This can be utilized in other facets of daily life. Simply give your anxieties to God, and do not fear for what it is you will say.]
13-14 "Then one from the crowd said to Him, 'Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.' But He said to him,
'Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over you'?" : Immanuel explains that not all things of the earth are the Christ's worry. For a man that lives within the law, is subject to the law. The division of inheritance is a law of men. Therefore, do not ask the Lord to solve such an issue. Instead, seek men to solve the problems of men.
15 "
And he said to them, 'Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses'." : Immanuel speaks with reference to the man from 13-14 who was so worried about getting money, that he asked the Lord to intervene. One should have faith that the Lord will provide, and He will.
16-21 "
Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: 'The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, what shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops? So he said, I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry". But God said to him, Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided? So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God'." : This parable explains that at no time can a man give up on toiling, securing, or being watchful. For when the time comes that a man should stop doing those things, at that time everything will be at stake. To lay up treasure for oneself is to live a life seeking the material, the world. All glory should be given to God. To be rich toward God is to treat your faith like a currency. By your faith to God you shall pay for your abundance and leisure.
22-28 "Then He said to His disciples,
'Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?' : A reiteration of have nor fear except for fear of the Lord. Again, give your anxieties to the Lord. God provides for all creatures on the earth, which He created. The Lord made man in His own image. Thus, with faith, there is no possibility of the Lord not providing for us - The Lord WILL provide. Often, mankind worries about things that are completely out of proportion to what we are facing. Men will not afflict themselves to provide the least amount of effort required, yet desire the reward for something that requires much effort - put in the work, with faith, and you will receive the reward (your good desire). The Lord "clothes" (provides) for the grass, even though the lifespan is short. Our lifespans are longer, more complicated, and much more demanding. Thus, the Lord will provide even more so for us.
29-34
"And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also'." : All of mankind seeks to provide pleasure and comfort for themselves - food, sex, drug, sleep - paying heed to nothing that the Father has ordained we should do. These are modernites. They consume endlessly, living fruitless lives, and do not afflict themselves of that which the Lord has commanded we should. The Lord knows that we must eat to survive, that we must drink, that we must have times of rest, that we must marry and procreate - God ordained it, after all. However, to live solely for those things is an affront to God. Get rid of your earthly worries, treasures, and pleasures. To provide ourselves "money bags which do not grow old" is to invest in our faith. Like a currency, we invest in and build up our faith in God by keeping confidence with Him. If you set things of the world as your primary "treasure" (concern), you will lose them. Instead, set following the upright path, that God ordained, as your primary purpose.
35-40 “
Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” : To gird one's waist is to afflict oneself of the pleasures of the world. Remember, the "lamps" are the eyes. To let your lamps be burning is to seek the Lord. The allegory of the "wedding" is Christ's sacrifice, wherein He was married to our sins for our sake. Christ often refers to Himself as the Bridegroom, or Husband. We should always be ready to answer the call of our Lord. If we are, the Lord Himself will serve us in the form of granting our every good desire. Again, we should always be ready to answer the Lord, for we can never know when the Lord will come.
41- 48 Then Peter said to Him, “Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?” And the Lord said, “
Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more." : Immanuel challenges us to be the most righteous men on earth. For if we should be that, the Lord will grant us any good thing we should desire, and supplant us above all others. But, if we should lose our faith, the Lord will punish us more so than any sinner who had never known the Lord. For to those who have been given great faith, and talents of the Lord, much will be required - more so than many others. If you understand what the Lord has put you on the earth to do, you best do it. If the Lord has blessed you with many things, all the more so the Lord will expect you to do.
49-53
“
I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished! Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” : Immanuel came to pit brother against brother, daughter against mothers, and son against father - friends, family, and relatives against those they love. The "fire" is the zealous faith in which the Lord expects. The Christ explains that He wished that we were already prepared to face the world with our faith in God-through-Christ - even against our own families.
54-56 Then He also said to the multitudes, “
Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is. And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is. Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?" : Mankind trusts in that which they can see and that which they can experience, on this earth. But trust is easily broken. Mankind is given to trusting in other fallible men. Mankind also looks to divination, soothsaying, tarot cards, rituals, and laws. Instead, men should understand that the Lord our God is real, the Bible is real. Mankind is willing to look to the heavens and believe in extra terrestrials, with or without proof. Yet, with or without proof, men are not given to believing in the Lord God of hosts. We must disconnect from the world in order to see that which the Lord has ordained for us.
57-59
“
Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right? When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite.” : Even men who vehemently live by the ways of the world are unable, or unwilling, to live by the ways which could be considered fair, or just. The Lord declares that those who live by the world will be required to face the world in all those ways in which they have participated.