Scott Allen leads today's lesson from Matthew 13:24-30,36-43. Do you ever wonder why God allows bad people to remain in our world? Why doesn't God let good people remain separate and trouble-free? Today's parable explains that God chooses to allow both His transformed children and the world's rebellious sinners to live together until judgment day. We can expect to frequently interact with those who are opposed to God's will and refuse to abide by moral rules. How we interact will set us apart as God's children, most of all realizing that sinners are not our ultimate enemy, but rather it is Satan who stirs up trouble in our world and entraps sinners in harmful behaviors. We stand our ground in God's armor, reaching out to the lost, knowing that God's justice will arrive on the day of reckoning. Those who belong to God will graduate to Heaven and be free from sin. Anyone not forgiven in Christ will be punished in the eternal flames of Hell. Either way, God's mercy and justice will be served.

Jesus taught with authority and clarity, but He often conflicted with the religious leaders of his day. In their zealous quest for self-righteousness, the Pharisees had turned Moses' 10 commandments and other direct teachings of the Old Testament into over 700 rules and regulations that made it nearly impossible for an ordinary Jew to feel good about following God. These man-made rules gave the Pharisees opportunity to claim fault with Jesus and his disciples. In Matthew 12:1-14, we see the disciples criticized for merely snacking on grain in a field because it defied the Pharisee's regulations against harvesting on the Sabbath... but Jesus demonstrated that His disciples were innocent. In so doing, Jesus revealed the dangers of legalism. While all of God's commands should be obeyed, we do our community a disservice anytime our personal man-made rules or preferences hinder people from enjoying everyday life, meeting basic needs, and receiving help.

Scott Allen leads today's lesson from Matthew 10:16-20,26-34. Believers shouldn't expect harmony with an unbelieving world. Jesus came to earth and forces us to choose sides. When we decide to follow Jesus, we become the world's enemy. Nonetheless, Jesus sends us out into the world as witnesses. But what kind of witness? We are to be sheep among wolves. We are not to attack or bite or harass or threaten others. Rather, trusting our shepherd, we are to be shrewdly aware while keeping ourselves innocent from wrongdoing. Our speech must be gentle, respectful, and full of unapologetic truth. Dauntless, we faithfully represent Jesus and His teachings to a critical world, knowing that God's way always works best and that God rewards and watches over those obedient to Him. In our virtue, we serve valiantly and identify with Christ visibly, sharing our testimony and speaking with the aid of the Holy Spirit.