The Caldwell Commentaries Podcast

After feeding the 5,000+ people with five barley loaves and two fish (an amazing miracle), the Lord Jesus then presented a powerful message in what has come to be known as His "Bread of Life Sermon" of John chapter 6.  We present this very important discourse in four parts (of which this is the first).   This sermon was a defining moment in Christ's life, for after hearing it and misunderstanding what He taught, most of His followers turned and walked no more with Him.  It is critical to rightly interpret this sermon, which we do!

John chapter 6, "The Bread of Life Sermon" (Part II - continuing look at verses 26-40).  The main point Jesus wanted the people and His disciples to understand through this discourse was that His Kingdom is not a political or even an earthly issue, but a spiritual one.  The crowd had wanted to crown Him King after the miraculous feeding, but He evaded their efforts.  They needed to understand He did not come to be a political King to free them from Roman bondage, but as a spiritual King (the only King of Heaven and Earth) to set them free from much more serious bondage - to sin and death!   In this lesson, He taught them how He is the True Manna from Heaven and that He is far superior to Moses.  Manna was only for Israel and it was temporary.  He is the Bread of God Who gave His life for the world, and it is permanent.  Moses was merely the human instrument God used to feed the people, as the disciples had been Christ's instruments to distribute the food to the people the previous day.  Christ performed the miraculous miracle in His own power.  Manna was the shadow; He is the Substance.

In this lesson from our 8-year Life of Christ study (through all four gospels), titled "Cresting and Resting the Stormy Sea" in the accompany commentary-book ("Life of Christ Vol. 3), we discuss the Lord's amazing deliverance of His disciples from sure death in a very violent storm.  The Lord calmed that storm by simply getting into the ship with His disciples, but there was another miracle that occurred at the very same time!! That simultaneous miracle is mentioned so briefly, it is OFTEN NOT NOTICED AT ALL.  It also took place quickly (in the twinkling of an eye), and may very well serve as a beautiful prophetic picture of THE RAPTURE (and/or the individual Christian's "home-going").  The ship and all "on board" were instantly on the shore of safety (i.e. Heaven)!    

John 6:1-15; Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-40; Luke 9:10-17 The feeding of the 5,000 men (plus women and children, so more likely at least 15,000 people) is the only specific miracle recorded in all four gospel accounts other than Christ's resurrection!   It was a spectacular miracle that produced a peak in the peoples' interest in Jesus, even causing them to want to crown Him king, but for the wrong reasons.  This is why after we discuss Part I of this lesson, "Jesus Feeds the Multitude," we then look at Part II, "Jesus Flees the Multitude".  Many spiritual lessons were taught the disciples of Christ through this miracle; they also apply to us today!  A "must" listen message!  

Matthew 14:1-12.  We come in this lesson to the death of one of the most fearless men of God who ever lived, John the Baptist.  In this same episode about the godly, fearless Baptist, we learn about a godless man who feared just about everyone except God!  His name was Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea; the man responsible for the beheading of the Baptist.  This is a great lesson to illustrate the truth of Proverbs 29:25, "The fear of man brings a snare".  It is also a good lesson on the human conscience, as well as on the very serious danger of lust and peer pressure.

In the final section of the Lord's "Ordination Sermon" to His men, found in Matthew 10:24-42, His words apply to all believers.  In fact, in this interesting passage, we find some of His most definitive teaching on the true nature of Christian discipleship in the New Testament.  He "pulled no punches".  He "painted" no pretentious pictures when it came to revealing what is involved when a person chooses to follow Him.  He spoke about the blessings and the bruises; the promises and the persecutions, and the rewards and the rejections. This is the key passage in Scripture on Christian discipleship, which is the great task of the Church!  IMPORTANT LESSON

In this next section of the Lord's "Ordination Sermon" to His Apostles, Matthew 10:16-23, we find that the Lord really had something important to say to all His "helpers" (followers), not only the ones present with Him at that time, but also to those who would serve Him in the future (us and the Tribulation believers). As we cover the information of the Lord in verses 16 to 23, we will discuss His words of warning about the opposition of the "wolves" His disciples can expect to encounter (then, now, and in the future).  He forewarned that the opposition to their message about Him would come from the religionists, the rulers, and their own relatives.  So very true! The persecution the godly believer can expect to encounter will give him or her opportunities to witness.  Jesus assured His men (and all future disciples) they need not be concerned what to say in those situations, for the Spirit would speak through them (10:19, 20).  We also hear the Lord talk about the disciples' obligation to withstand.  We discuss what He meant by His words, ". . . but he that endureth to the end shall be saved" (10:22b) - often misunderstood.

In this lesson, we further discuss the Lord's "Ordination Sermon" to His men.  We discuss the men in their groups of four and then in the pairs by which they were sent forth.  Also important is why they were to travel in pairs - we talk about the various wise reasons for that.  Jesus explains to them what their ministry was to be, as well as the message they were to give and the miracles they would be empowered to perform.  So, too, He talked about their "means" (to trust God to provide) and their method(s) they were to use as they went to towns and cities and stayed in homes, etc.  There is a lot of practical information for us today as we go forth in the name of Christ, proclaiming Him to those of our communities and beyond!

Matthew 9:35-10:42.  This is the record of the very first ordination that ever took place among those who would serve as the foundational, living stones of Church, the lord's Apostles.  In the fourth recorded sermon of Christ's ministry, He gave the ordination charge to His men before sending them out, in pairs, on their first mission venture without Him.   To this point in His ministry, Jesus was doing everything (teaching, healing, preaching) on His own.  His men were merely observers and learners, but not participators in His works.  They needed to learn how to also become directly involved as "laborers" in the ministry of sowing seed and harvesting souls for the Kingdom of God.  The Lord's time with them was getting short.  They needed to have some "hands-on" training!  

There are two kinds of blindness that afflict the human race: physical and spiritual.  The Lord encountered both types in this lesson, "Binding Blindness".  He healed the physically blind eyes of two man whose eyes may have seen nothing, but whose spiritual "eyes" were enlightened to "see" the Light of Christ! The Lord also encountered the spiritual blindness that abundantly existed in Israel, particularly among the citizens of His hometown of Nazareth (Mark 6:1-6a).  Sadly, Jesus encountered far more cases of spiritual blindness than ALL the other types of physical deficiencies and diseases put together! There are two miracles discussed in this lesson: the miracle of sight to two blind men (Matthew 9:29) and the miracle of healing a dumb demonian (Matthew 9:33).

Mark 5:25-34 (also Matthew 9:20-22 and Luke 8:43-48) is the record of the Lord's encounter, as He was on His way to Jairus' house to see his 12-year old daughter, who was dying, with a woman who suffered from an issue of blood for 12 years.  Not only did the woman suffer physically (never finding any physician who could help her), but she also emotionally and socially.  Her ailment made her ceremonially unclean, so in Jewish society this meant she would be excluded from all social gatherings, including to worship in her local synagogue. The woman heard about Jesus and His incredible healing powers.  Thus, when she found out He was in her hometown of Capernaum, she carefully joined the thronging crowd around Him as He made His way to Jairus' house.  She believed that if she could just reach out and slightly touch His clothing (not Him), that she would be made whole!  When she managed to touch the hem of the Lord's clothes, the Lord felt power issue forth from Him.  He knew someone had reached out to Him in faith, and when the woman came forward to share "all the truth" about her situation and what she had done in secretly touching His garment, the Lord, on the only occasion in the gospel accounts, called her "Daughter".  Then He said to her, "Thy faith hath made thee whole" (5:34).   It is a beautiful story about our Great Physician!

Mark 5:22-24, 35:45 (also Matthew 9:18, 19, 23-26; Luke 8:40-42, 49-56).  This is the account of the "healing" by Jesus of the third humanly incurable situation in Mark chapter 5 (the first two were the healing of dehumanized demoniacs - Lesson #61 and the healing of the disgraced daughter of Israel - Lesson #62a).  The third consecutive healing miracle of the Great Physician (Jesus) in this chapter was the most "incurable" of all.  Jairus' dying 12-year old daughter actually died before Jesus made it to the home.  After the delay with the woman with issue of blood, the Lord arrived "too late" (it would seem), for the little girl was dead and the professional mourners had already arrived!   If you don't already know this story, you will be richly blessed; if you do already know it, you will also be richly blessed.  Why?  Because we can never hear enough how our Great Physician Saviour, Who is incarnate God, can "heal" every humanly incurable situation, including the worst of all, death!  Halleluiah!

Mark 5:1-20.  The fifth chapter of Mark is often referred to as the Bible chapter for "incurables" because it contains the written record of Christ's confrontations with three humanly incurable cases. First, He had "a divine appointment" with two men who were mentally deranged because of demonic possession.  That will be the subject of this first of a three-part study on "The Great Physician".  The Lord's second encounter was with a physically disabled woman who had gone to every doctor she could find, and none could cure her of the issue of blood that plagued her for 12 years.  The third situation was the most "incurable" of all, from the human perspective,  It was death, in this case it was the death of a 12-year old girl, the daughter of a man named Jairus.  Both of these situations will be discussed in the second part of this study (see Lesson #61a and b). The three humanly incurable situations of Mark 5 picture man's incurable situation regarding sin.  Apart from the healing/saving power of the Great Physician (Jesus Christ), men are the hopeless, helpless victims of Satan (first case of this chapter), of disease (second case), and of death (third case).  

America, and, in fact, the world, is in the midst of a "storm" this very hour.  These are unsettling times as we face the potential for World War III or some kind of nuclear or cyber attack, terrible inflation, open borders, anti-Semitism on the rise, inflated grocery prices, the continual possibility of another pandemic, government corruption on every level, the dangers of AI technology in the hands of evil people, the expansion of extreme Islam and Communism into the Western world, the push for globalism, the apostacy of much of Christendom ... and on and on.  How are Christians to respond?  Well, actually, the same way we should respond to all the rest of life's storms!  It is often said if you are not in a storm, it is either because you have just come through one or one is waiting ahead!  Storms are a natural part of living in a sin-cursed world.  There is no way to avoid them, but there is a very calm way to "ride them out" free of fear and full of faith - not faith in ourselves (or we will surely sink); not faith in all the resources of government and science (we will still sink, for there are storms greater than mankind's combined intelligence and strength), but faith in the one Person Who is able to guide us safely through any and all storms.  There is no reason to fear the furies and floods of life if you have invited Jesus Christ "on board" to be the Captain of your ship!  He will see you safely to your final destination, no matter what is happening in your personal life or in the world today. This lesson comes in our "Caldwell Commentary" series "Life of Christ Vol. 3" (available through www.scripturetruth.com   and Amazon.com

From Matthew 13:44-52, the Lord continued to teach what theologians call "The Mystery Parables Discourse".  In the next two parables: "The Parable of the Hidden Treasure" and "The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price," He spoke of what God Himself would gain during the intermediate stage of His Kingdom.  He would gain a precious treasure and a valuable pearl.   In the seventh parable, "The Parable of the Dragnet" (13:47-50), the Lord spoke of the judgment that would come at the consummation of the mystery form of the Kingdom, when He would return to establish the Messianic form of the Kingdom offered at His First Coming - but postponed because of Israel's rejection of Him, the King.  The judgment will be a time of separation (wheat from tares; good fish from bad fish). Matthew 13 ends with "The Parable of the Householder," by which Christ charged His disciples with personal responsibility to generously distribute both the old and new truths they were so very privileged to have!

In this lesson from Matthew 13:24-43, the Lord Jesus fulfilled another Messianic prophecy, which is that the coming Messiah would speak in parables (Psalm 78:2), for in teaching His men on the inter-advent Kingdom of God on earth (roughly equivalent to the Church Age), He gave seven parables.  It was followed with an eighth parable, not directly related to the others, but one that taught a Biblical principle: with understanding comes responsibility (see "The Parable of the Householder" in Lesson #59).   We discuss the reason the Lord often taught by way of parables before we then get into an indepth look at three important parables which shed a lot of light on the current age of Christendom.  They are (1) "The Parable of the Wheat and Tares," (2) "The Parable of the Mustard Seed," and (3) "The Parable of the Leaven Hidden in Meal".  We spend valuable time explaining the varied interpretations of these parables, always settling on the one that best fits the context, the original meaning of the Greek, and the rest of Scripture.

This is the second half of our study of "The Parable of the Sower" and the four types of human heart types upon which the Seed (God's Word) is sown!

Witnessing the rejection of Jesus by both Israel's religious rulers and even His own step-brothers would cause the Lord's disciples and other followers to wonder what would happened to the promise of the Messianic Kingdom if Israel rejected the King?  The answer is the primary focus of Jesus' teaching in Matthew 13 (with parallel accounts in Mark 4 and Luke 8).  Through a series of parables, He told His men that the literal Kingdom on earth would be postponed until a time when Israel would accept Him (His Second Coming).     However, though the literal Kingdom was postponed, the Lord taught about a "mystery" form of the Kingdom that would be established in the interval between His rejection and His return.  This "interregnum" would be an internal, spiritual Kingdom on earth - not visible because it would exist in the hearts of believers.  This truth was unknown to the Old Testament prophets and writers, which is why it is called a "mystery".  Through the parables presented in Matthew 13, the Lord revealed the "mysteries" or "secrets of the Kingdom" to those with ears to hear and understand.   The first parable of "The Mystery Kingdom" is the very famous "Parable of the Sower".  The Sower is Christ (and His followers); the Seed is His Word; the four types of soil represent the four types of heart conditions (human responses) upon which the sown Word falls: (1) roadway soil, (2) rocky soil, (3) reprobate soil, and (4) ready soil.

A deeply tragic truth about the Lord Jesus is how greatly misunderstood He was - not only by His foes (jealous of His power and popularity), but also by those closest to Him, His family. In this lesson (Matthew 12:22-50), Israel's religious rulers gave their "official" decision that Jesus performed His works with satanic power.  At this same time, we also find that His own brothers thought He was not quite right in His mind.    Included in this study: Christ's healing of a blind and mute demoniac; "The Parable of the Divided Kingdom," "The Parable of Subduing the Strong Man," "The Parable of the Empty House," and another prophecy given by Christ about His up-coming death and resurrection.

From Matthew 11:20-30, we discuss what the Lord had to say about greater spiritual privilege bringing greater judgment.  The citizens of the Galilean cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum had greater spiritual privileges and opportunities for repentance and salvation than any other people, for Jesus Christ, God's Son, spent more time in their vicinity than anywhere else on earth.  However, although the people were amazed by His miracles and authoritative teaching, few were spiritually and eternally affected by putting their faith in Him as Saviour and Lord.  Thus, Jesus pronounced three "woe judgments" on them.  Discussed also in this lesson is the sin of indifference.  From Luke 7:36-50, the Lord taught a second important Biblical principle: greater pardon brings greater love.  This is the account of the sinful woman who came uninvited to Simon the Pharisee's house to anoint Jesus' feet with her tears of joy and wiped them dry with her hair.  Simon and his other self-righteous guests were horrified that Jesus would allow the woman to even touch Him.  He used the occasion to make the contrast between a humble "babe" in Christ and a narcissistic "wise and prudent" man (see Matthew 11:25).  He then taught "The Parable of the Two Debtors".