[Jesus speaking]
“Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them. So you testify that you approve of what your ancestors did; they killed the prophets, and you build their tombs. Because of this, God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute.’ Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.
Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.” When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely and to besiege him with questions, waiting to catch him in something he might say.

–Parallel verses:
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭19‬
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

There is a key to bringing up children to be excellent citizens and servants of God. We must love them and provide a healthy dose of discipline. Children who are not adequately disciplined are unequipped to be successful in life. They remain selfish and sinful. Children that are not loved well, can become calloused and cold-hearted. It could be said that the keys to raising great children are love and discipline.

Jesus talks about the key to knowledge here and he said the experts of the law had taken this key away. Like keys to child-rearing, this key unlocks the knowledge we need to live a life that pleases God. So what is the key? The Ephesians passage talks about having Christ in our hearts through faith. This is the key to new life — having God’s heart in us.

What these Jewish leaders did, instead, was to focus on appearances, rituals, and rules. They did not focus on the heart of God. A focus on God’s heart will create a LIFE FOUNDATION OF LOVE. And this love will be EXPANSIVE, because it is sourced from God. It will surpass the human knowledge of this world. It will give us heavenly understanding and knowledge.

Ever wonder how you can learn to love like God? I do. I want to love like him more and more each day. We see here it has to do with keeping Jesus Christ and his model of loving in our hearts.

Lord, thank you for loving me so well and creating for me a way to love like you do. Fill my heart with your love and give me power to share this love with a hurting and broken world!