New Idea

So...Bug and I are reading through the four gospels every night. We figure if looking at Jesus is how we're supposed to learn how to be a good husband and a good wife, respectively of course, we might as well dive right in...and, with her blessing, I figured I'd blog about what we read.

The Gospel's are divided by header...so I figured I'd post something I've learned, or that I know to be important, about each header...so without further ado...

The GOSPEL according to Matthew

Overview: Matthew was a Jewish Tax Collector. His basic audience were the Jews, the people who have heard of the coming messiah over and over since they were born. His goal was to show, constantly, how Jesus fulfilled every prophecy concerning the messiah and all righteousness of the law, both spiritual and ritual, proving him to be the long awaited messiah.

Chapter 1: 1-17
This is the genealogy of Jesus, starting with Abraham, the father of the Nation of Israel, proving that, by his father's side, Jesus descended from the Patriarchs, through the Tribe of Judah, through the line of King David, which was not disrupted by the deportation to Babylon.

Odd but Cool (and important) fact: Jesus' blood line was filled with sin. We've got incest (Judah and his daughter, Tamar), Gentile Prostitutes (Rahab from Jericho). and Infidelity and Murder (King David tapping Bathsheba and having her husband killed). We've also got great redemption (Ruth the Moabitess whose husband died and who was redeemed by Boaz)

Chapter 1:18-25
Short version of Jesus' birth. No story of how Mary was met by an angel...only Joseph being told that his wife's pregnancy was of God. Notice that he did not want to shame her, so he wasn't going to tout in the street that she was pregnant. He was going to be kind to her in their "divorce." The first prophecy mentioned in the Gospels is right here: Isaiah 7:14...only getting references...go read them though. Don't take my word for it...that would be stupid.

Chapter 2:1-12
The visit of the Magi is first told here. They go to Jerusalem, the capital of Judea, and ask Herod, the king, where the newborn king is? Sounds logical, right? Ask the current king where the guy who's going to replace him is...really smart, guys. Anywho, instead of being excited, all of Jerusalem was troubled...it troubled them that the Christ was born...the Messiah they were waiting for...and they're troubled...morons. Anywho, they consult the scriptures and find that he was to be born in Bethlehem, the town of David's birth. Herod sends them to find him and come back, under the guise of wanting to worship him. However, God protects his son and, after their great gifts (Gold to crown the king, Frankincense for the priestly duties, and Myrrh to signify his suffering), they split a different way.

Chapter 2:13-15
God gives Joseph another dream, telling him to take his family to Egypt because Herod's looking to destroy Jesus. Here's another prophecy: Hosea 11:1...go read it.

Chapter 2:16-18
Herod goes apeshit, killing all boys two-years-old and younger. He doesn't want to risk losing his power...too bad he's too late...well, too good for us. Anywho, another prophecy fulfilled: Jeremiah 31:15 and Genesis 42 (and Lamentations 5:7)

Chapter 2:19-23
Herod dies, God tells Joseph he can go back. However, Herod's son is reigning in his place, so Joseph moves to the town of Nazareth in Galilee...and that fulfills another prophecy: "He shall be called a Nazarene"...no list of cross reference in Bible Gateway. Maybe my dad will help me out on that one.

Chapter 3:1-12
Jesus' cousin, John aka John the Baptist, had a ministry too...his was to prepare the way for Jesus. I'm sure you've all heard the, "Prepare the way of the Lord," speech. John looked like a nutcase...he lived in the desert, he wore camel fur and ate bugs dipped in honey. However, he knew that repentance and turning from sin was necessary for salvation, claiming the promise of the messiah through the seed of Eve and the people of Israel and the line of David...repent and claim God's promises. Anywho, here's another prophecy: Isaiah 40:3...the voice in the desert.

Cool Fact: We hear a lot about Jesus ripping the Pharisees and Scribes new butt holes because they present a fake righteous front, but inside are unrepentant, believing they earn their way into God's favor by ritual. However, this time, it's John the Baptist...go read how John smacks them up. Also, it's very convicting to anyone who is a Christian and believes that their actions play a part in their righteousness...we're all hypocrites, we who call ourselves Christians. We are weak, only empowered to obey by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, when we do good, we try and convince others to do good, or we act in a right way, especially around those that see our sin...we look like hypocrites.

Chapter 3:13-17
Jesus comes to John for a baptism. John says that Jesus should baptize him, because John is unworthy, but Jesus says that John must baptize him so that all righteousness should be fulfilled. This is because priests needed to be sprinkled with water in order to become priests (not immersed, as many would say, but baptized by sprinkling in order to allow their words to represent the people of Israel...so the word baptize in the Biblical sense means, in essence, to transmute, such as when the Israelites were transmuted to Moses so that he would speak for them, and the church is transmuted into Christ, so his sacrifice is good for us...or that's the view of Jay Adams (Author: The Meaning and Mode of Baptism...not a bad booklet...thanks, Dad.)). Anywho, when Jesus was baptized, he "came up out of the water", (some say when John drew him out...others say when he walked out...or still others when God lifted him above the water into floaty-airy-man status). The people who were there saw the Holy Spirit descend on Christ like a dove and hear God's voice saying, "This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased." That's a ringing endorsement of who Jesus' is by God.

Now, I'm going to stop here for now, and hopefully re-read chapter 4 and the start of Chapter 5 with Bug tonight...but if not, I'll blog about them and the chapters we read tomorrow.

Now onto some not-so-serious talk: The Phillies dropped a game to the Pirates and 2 to the Red Sox...including two losses from Roy Halliday. Now, I can't expect Doc to be perfect, but something's up...the Phillies aren't giving him Run Support...and this last outing was just...icky...yes, I said icky. It was sad indeed. C'mon, boys...you're going to Citi Field to face the Metrosexuals...win this series...be the team you are.

On a side note...the Rays are 20 games over .500...wow.