Day 16 - Matthew 11

1. What information does Jesus provide about himself in 11:4-6 so that John, and other readers of the Old Testament, can understand who he is?

2. Reflecting on 11:10 (and perhaps other parts of the Bible, if you can) what role did John the Baptizer play in Jesus' rescue mission?

3. In 11:16, Jesus refers to his opponents (mostly religious leaders) as "children sitting in the marketplaces." What does he mean by this?

4. From the section of 11:20-24, we learn an interesting thing: miracles (supernatural acts) do not necessarily produce faith. The places where "most of his miracles had been performed" (v. 20) are sharply criticized. How can this be? If you can, try to explain how/why the people who witnessed Jesus do incredible - never seen before - things, would not want to follow him.

5. In your own experience, do miracles produce faith now? If someone is looking for God to prove himself, so to speak, and he does ... is it a guarantee that that person will repent and believe? Why/why not?

6. The close of this chapter includes some truly special and comforting words - in particularly vv. 28-30. Read this little section two or three times. In a short paragraph, talk about Jesus' invitation ("Come to me...") and what this means to you.