1 John 1-2 Fellowship with God and Man

TMS 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 Reaping What You Sow

2 Corinthians 9:6 “But this I say:

he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,

and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

7 So let each one give

as he purposes in his heart,

not grudgingly or of necessity;

for God loves a cheerful giver.

8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”

Observations: 9:6-7 God doesn't need our money, but we need to give. God actually provides us with the means of giving, and we are just being stewards of His stuff when we give. So we want to determine what He wants us to do with His stuff. God wants us to give of our own free will (as He wants us to live all our lives), choosing to do what pleases Him, and benefits us. So we should determine God's will for our giving, and then give, knowing we will benefit in return. We can't out-give God, and He is totally just in recompensing those who honor Him. See the context in 2 Corinthians 9 for a better understanding of giving, and the series of being faithful with God's treasure at the end of the TOYL book on Truthbase.net.

Application: Know that God gives you what you need, and will give you back more than you give or willingly “sacrifice.” (see Malachi 3:10 comments).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thanks that You have so graciously given of Yourself in providing my salvation in Christ, and in meeting all my needs; may I mirror Your grace and generosity in my giving. Amen.

1 John 1-2 The first epistle of John is considered the most difficult to outline in the New Testament, but it is fairly easy to understand and apply the individual verses without a thorough knowledge of the literary structure (like Proverbs). One commentator declared that the book made as much sense reading each sentence beginning at the last verse of chapter 5, as it did beginning in 1:1. However, there are discernible blocks of text (lots of structure in triads, etc,) and a logic flow, but the argument isn't as smooth due to our insufficient understanding, not John's writing. The apostle John writes to born-again believers so they may have fellowship with God and each other, and continue to abide in Christ (John 15)  so they can reap the abundant life God offers. The epistle addresses a number of errors and false teaching that could keep believers from being blessed. Just like in the end of his gospel, John reveals his purpose in writing at the end.

1 John 5:11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.

1 John 1 Fellowship with God and Man

1:1 That which was from the beginning,

that which we have heard,

that which we have seen with our eyes,

that which we saw,

and our hands touched,

concerning the Word of life

2 and the life was revealed,

and we have seen,

and bear witness,

and declare to you

that eternal life,

which was with the Father,

and was revealed to us;

3 that which we have seen and heard

we declare to you,

that you also may have fellowship with us.

Yes, and our fellowship is with the Father,

and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

4 And we write these things to you, that our joy may be fulfilled.

5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and announce to you,

that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.

6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him

and walk in the darkness,

we lie, and don’t tell the truth.

7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light,

we have fellowship with one another,

and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son,

cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we say that we have no sin,

we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us.

9 If we confess our sins,

He is faithful

and just

to forgive us the sins,

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

10 If we say that we haven’t sinned,

we make Him a liar,

and His word is not in us.

Observations: 1:1-4 John opens the epistle with words very similar to the prologue of his gospel: “in the beginning,” “the word”, and “life.” He testifies to Jesus (the word of life) so that the born-again readers may have fellowship/participation with the apostles in the life of God, so that their mutual joy might be full (because his children walk in the truth - 3 John 1:4). It might be worth making sure you understand what fellowship is: its root is “to have in common” and by extension “to share” or “participate in.” We share or participate in the life of Christ, both as the animating force of our spiritual existence, and the rule or practice of our lives. If Christ is not living in and through us, we won't have Biblical fellowship with each other. Unity is achieved, not by compromise, but by all parties moving to the truth.

1:5-7 Since God is light (another concept from John's prologue), and in Him is no darkness, then those who share His life (fellowship) can't walk in darkness, but must walk in the light (not live in sin). This general principle is stated in verse 5, and then elaborated in verses 6-10. Those who say they have fellowship with God, yet are sinning, are liars. But those who walk in the light, not only do have fellowship with God, but also have fellowship (as shared life) with other believers. This is not about sinless perfection, but about being forgiven through the sacrifice of Christ so that one can be cleansed from sin (see comments on Heb 9:14, where the blood of Christ cleanses our conscience from dead works so we can serve the living God).

1:8-10 Those who say they have no sin are deceived (psychologists say we're blind to most of our faults), and the truth is not in them. However, the corrective to sin, the Christian bar of soap, is to “name it and claim it.” Name the sin, and claim forgiveness. “Confess” means to “say the same thing” as God does about our behavior, that it is wrong, and leads to death. Acknowledging what is wrong is tantamount to forsaking it, for why would someone want to continue in what is wrong and deadly? Confession opens the door to cleansing. If we confess, God is faithful and just. The structure is chiastic, with God's justice being the basis of our forgiveness (Christ paid the penalty so we don't have to -Rom 3:23-26), and His faithfulness to His promises is the basis of our cleansing (1:7), so we can walk in the light of His truth. This is not justification, but the sanctification or holiness necessary for living in unity with a holy God (see comments on Mt 6:15).

Verse 10 essentially restates verse 8, forming an inclusio; those who would deny their sin are not only liars, but make God a liar as well. Such folks don't have the light of the truth in them, and are not in fellowship with God.

Application: God wants us to walk in the light so we can share His life; if we find ourselves slipping into the dark, use 1 John 1:9 to get back into the light.

Prayer: God, I praise You for wanting to share Your life with me; may I walk in the light and enjoy fellowship with You and my fellow forgiven believers. Amen.

1 John 2 Confidence at His Appearing

2:1 My little children, I write these things to you so that you may not sin.

If anyone sins, we have a Counselor with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous.

2 And He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins,

and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.

3 This is how we know that we know Him:

if we keep His commandments.

4 One who says, "I know Him,"

and doesn’t keep His commandments,

is a liar,

and the truth isn’t in him.

5 But whoever keeps His word,

the love of God has most certainly been perfected in him.

This is how we know that we are in Him:

6 he who says he abides in Him

ought himself also to walk just like He walked.

7 Brothers, I write no new commandment to you,

but an old commandment

which you had from the beginning.

The old commandment is the word which you heard

from the beginning.

8 Again, I write a new commandment to you,

which is true in Him and in you;

because the darkness is passing away,

and the true light already shines.

9 He who says he is in the light

and hates his brother,

is in the darkness even until now.

10 He who loves his brother abides in the light,

and there is no occasion for stumbling in him.

11 But he who hates his brother

is in the darkness,

and walks in the darkness,

and doesn’t know where he is going,

because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

12 I write to you, little children,

because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.

13 I write to you, fathers,

because you know Him who is from the beginning.

I write to you, young men,

because you have overcome the evil one.

I write to you, little children,

because you know the Father.

14 I have written to you, fathers,

because you know Him who is from the beginning.

I have written to you, young men,

because you are strong,

and the word of God abides in you,

and you have overcome the evil one.

15 Don’t love the world,

neither the things that are in the world.

If anyone loves the world,

the Father’s love isn’t in him.

16 For all that is in the world,

the lust of the flesh,

the lust of the eyes,

and the pride of life,

isn’t the Father’s,

but is the world’s.

17 The world is passing away with its lusts,

but he who does God’s will abides forever.

18 Little children, these are the end times,

and as you heard that the Antichrist is coming,

even now many antichrists have arisen.

By this we know that it is the final hour.

19 They went out from us,

but they weren't of (ek) us;

for if they were of us,

they would have continued with us.

But they left, that they might be revealed that none of them were of us.

20 You have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.

21 I have not written to you because you don’t know the truth,

but because you know it,

and because no lie is of the truth.

22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ?

This is the Antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.

23 Whoever denies the Son,

the same doesn’t have the Father.

He who confesses the Son has the Father also.

24 Therefore, as for you,

let that abide in you

which you heard from the beginning.

If that which you heard from the beginning

abides in you,

you also will abide

in the Son,

and in the Father.

25 This is the promise which He promised us, the eternal life.

26 These things I have written to you concerning those who would lead you astray.

27 As for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you,

and you don’t need for anyone to teach you.

But as His anointing teaches you concerning all things,

and is true, and is no lie,

and even as it taught you, you will abide in Him.

28 Now, little children, abide in Him,

that when He appears,

we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at his coming.

29 If you know that He is righteous,

you know that everyone who practices righteousness

is born of Him.

Observations: 2:1-2 John said in chapter 1 that he wants his readers to walk in the light and not sin. He reiterates that intent, and adds that if we do sin, we have an Advocate or Counselor with the Father, Jesus the Messiah, the Righteous. He is the atoning/covering sacrifice for our sins. But wait, there's more! Jesus died for the whole world (John 3:16) so He is the sacrifice for all people who put their faith in Him.

2:3-4 John gives a number of benchmarks throughout the book, so we don't deceive ourselves into believing what isn't true. We can have confidence that we know God if we keep His commandments. As Jesus said: “If you love me, obey me” and “Why do you call me Lord and don't do what I say?” (John 14:15; Luke 6:46). So if we are intimately acquainted with God, we will be keeping His commands. Those who don't obey are lying when they say they have a good relationship with God. The truth isn't abiding in them and there will be no fruit either (John 15).

2:5-11 Those who keep (abide in) God's word, have the love of/for God (objective genitive) brought to completion in living loyally for Him. This is how a believer knows they are living “in union with Him” (a major concept in the epistle); they who abide in Him, walk/live, as Jesus did, particularly in relationships with other believers that reflect self-sacrificial love (agape). This is in accord with the summation of the law (love - Galatians 5:14), the old command which Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:43), and the “new” major command Jesus gave his disciples at the Last Supper (John 13:34-45), expressing the higher standard to love self-sacrificially as Jesus loved them. The basis of the command is that the old dark order was passing away, and the new true light (of God's requirements) was already shining, for them to walk by. The one who hates his brother/sister is walking in the dark. The one who loves, abides in the light. One could argue that the old commandment was to believe and follow Christ (cf 3:23) but that command doesn't match the parallelism, nor the emphasis on loving others in the epistle. . 

2:12-15 It would have been the better division of the chapters, to begin chapter 2 here, since the earlier section relates to the theme of fellowship with God and others by walking in the light, and now John turns his attention to overcoming satanic obstacles to fellowship with God. There is a stylistic change of “I am writing to you” and the naming of three groups, possibly related to stages of spiritual development (young believers, mature believers, and those in the middle).

In verse 12 he writes to the “little children” whose sins are forgiven for the sake of God's glory or name. In verse 13 John addresses the same group, who have progressed from being forgiven to knowing God.

John writes to the “fathers” who have had a mature relationship with God, from the beginning, and are abiding in it, so the same content in is both verses.

John writes to the “young men” who initially have overcome the evil one, and then progressed to maintaining their strength by having the word of God abide in them (an ongoing necessity for fellowship -John 15).

2:15-16 Next John addresses their desires and values, which could trip them up. Unsanctified desires, derived from Satan's world, are the major reason believers continue to sin, and don't live in victory. See comments on Eve's temptation Genesis 3 and Jesus' temptation in Matthew 3. The desire for temporal power (pride-security/significance), pleasure (flesh), and possessions (eyes) motivate us to seek those things in the world, rather than the delights of the Father. The world, with its temporal trinkets will pass away, but the one who does God's will (which is knowable and doable) will abide forever. See series on Deadly Desires on Truthbase.net.

2:18-19 John warns them of the chief agent of Satan, the Antichrist, and the lesser minions, the false teachers who would seek to dissuade them from following Christ in the light. These false teachers went out from the the apostles, but they were not of (literally “ek” denoting source or origin, as in sharing the same source of teaching and doctrine) them. If the false teachers were from the apostles, they would have continued in the apostolic teaching. Their departure from the apostolic doctrine proved they were not based in them, and thus should be ignored. This indicates that the problem facing the readers is the same as that of the rest of the NT, Judaizers, who were denying the validity of the believer's experience in Jesus the Messiah, and teaching the OT as the basis of righteousness, rather than the words of Jesus. In fact they would go on to deny that Jesus was the Messiah (same word as Christ) of the OT, come in the flesh. Those who posit some sort of Gnostic teaching are ignorant of the fact that Gnosticism didn't become a coherent philosophy until the second century after Christ.

2:20-23 John reminds his readers that they have an “anointing” from the Holy One, so they have the correct knowledge, and don't need the Judaizing teaching. Apparently they still need John's instruction, and were in danger of being led astray, so they didn't know everything. The fact that they had an “anointing,” a reference to the Holy Spirit which the Messiah was to give, validated the Messiahship of Christ, and their accurate/true belief in Him. That was all they needed, not the false teaching of the antichrists. John isn't writing because they don't know the truth, but because they do know it (and don't need anything additional). No lie comes out of the truth; the liar is the one who denies that Jesus is the Messiah. Note they are not denying what He did, but that He is the promised Messiah of Isaiah 40-66 fame (as well as other places in Isaiah and the rest of the OT).

Satan is the one who denies the Father (as he did in Isaiah 14) and the Son (as he was doing through his agents, the false teachers. Whoever denies the Messiahship of the Son, doesn't have the Father either (so don't pay attention to them). Whoever confesses/acknowledges the Son (as the believers did) have the Father also (and don't need anything else).

2:24-27 Therefore (conclusion of the above), the believers should abide/remain in the teaching they heard from the real apostles, and have it abide in them (John 15). If they abide/remain in the truth, they will abide in the Son and Father, and have the fellowship John promised in the beginning of the epistle, and the eternal life Jesus promised in the gospels (cf John 3:16, 36). So the recipients of the letter don't need anyone to teach them anything else. The anointing they received (the fact of receiving the Holy Spirit) teaches them all they need to know to ignore the false teaching. This is not a blanket statement to all believers that they don't need teaching, but is context specific to the audience, with regard to the error of the antichrists. Jesus gave the responsibility to teach people to obey (Mt 28:20); Paul instructed Timothy to teach people who could teach others also (2 Timothy 2:2); the Holy Spirit gave gifted men to teach (Ephesians 4); and the gift of teaching to the early church (1 Corinthians 12). The author of Hebrews outlined the Christian career path of progressing to be able to teach others (Heb 5), so obviously believers need teaching, just not the false teaching of the antichrists (those opposed to Christ as Messiah, and probably advocated Judaism as the means to getting blessed). John closes the chapter, and opens the next one with the instruction to abide in what they had been taught, so they would abide in union with Christ.

2:28-29 John exhorts the believers to abide/remain in union with Christ so that when He appears to judge and set up His Millennial Kingdom, they would have confidence to stand before His judgment seat (2 Corinthians 5:9-10). Those who were not loyal to Him, or who spent their time stumbling around in the dark, would be ashamed at His coming.

Knowing that Jesus is righteous (and requires righteousness for blessing) they know that everyone who is born of Him would also have/practice righteousness.

Application: If we abide in the truth and aren't deceived by the world or false teachers, we will live in love and righteousness, and thus have confidence to stand before the Messiah when He returns.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I pray You would guide me in understanding and applying Your truth, so I will abide in You,and will not be ashamed to stand before You when You return. Amen.

Digging Deeper

God in a nutshell: God wants us to share in His life, and have proper relationships with others. He provides the means of doing that with His truth (light), and forgiveness, and wants to cleanse us from all our sin.

Build-a-Jesus: Jesus is the word of life and the coming Messiah, regardless of what anyone says. One day all will stand before Him and acknowledge that truth, even the Antichrist.

Us in a nutshell: We need to walk in the light and love each other if we are to share in the life of Christ.

Where to Go for More:

Truthbase.net

1 Thessalonians 4-5 The Will of God and the Rapture

TMS Numbers 23:19 God Doesn't Lie

Num 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie,

Nor a son of man, that He should repent.

Has He said, and will He not do?

Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

Observations: 23:19 Satan is the father of lies, but God is the father of truth. Satan and people can't be trusted, but God is forever trustworthy. He doesn't repent (as in go back on His promises). If God said He'd do it, He will. If He said it would happen, it will. He speaks galaxies into existence, so nothing is too difficult for Him. The only difficulty He has is with us choosing to believe and follow Him or not. Hebrews 11:6 indicates that faith is believing that God is who He said He is, and will do what He said He'd do. So why do we have difficulty believing Him? Because Satan deceives, distorts, and distracts us. By continually focusing on what God has revealed, we can keep His revelation in our thinking, and trust Him to fulfill His good desire for us.

Application: If we doubt God, we're being deceived by the devil and headed for discipline and destruction; if we trust all that God has said, it will be all good.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thanks for being so true and faithful and trustworthy; may I never doubt Your power or promises, but may I stake my life on Your word. Amen.

1Thessalonians 3-5 Paul wanted the Thessalonians to be blameless at the coming of Christ not just for their benefit, but his reward. He tells them how to live according to the will of God so they will be pleasing to Christ when He returns. Paul also gives the major teaching about the Rapture and how believers should minister to each other in light of it.

1 Thessalonians 3 Blameless in Holiness at His Coming

3:1 Therefore, when we couldn’t stand it any longer, we thought it good to be left behind at Athens alone, 2 and sent Timothy, our brother and God’s servant in the Good News of Christ, to establish you, and to encourage you concerning your faith; 3 that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you know that we are appointed to this task. 4 For most certainly, when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we are to suffer affliction, even as it happened, and you know. 5 For this cause I also, when I couldn’t stand it any longer, sent that I might know your faith, for fear that by any means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor would have been in vain.

6 But when Timothy came just now to us from you, and brought us glad news of your faith and love, and that you have good memories of us always, longing to see us, even as we also long to see you; 7 for this cause, brothers, we were encouraged over you in all our distress and affliction on account of/dia your faith. 8 For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord. 9 For what thanksgiving can we render again to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice because/dia of you before our God; 10 night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face, and may perfect that which is lacking in your faith?

11 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you; 12 and the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we also do toward you, 13 to the end he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

Observations: 3:1-5 Paul was concerned that the Thessalonians would have been overwhelmed by the afflictions from the Jews that they would abandon the faith. This is not belief that Christ died for their sins, but that God would reward those who diligently seek Him according to the revelation about the Messiah. So he sent Timothy to establish (make firm) and encourage (call alongside as he climbed the mountain) them in the faith they already had. If they succumbed to the pressure from the Jews, they would not be unborn again, but would not progress to glory. At the end of the last chapter Paul viewed the Thessalonians as the basis for his glory, crown/reward and in the Kingdom when Christ returned. If they failed to follow the path of faith, the labor he invested in them would have been in vain. Although he had great love and fondness for them (the chiastic center of the last two chapters), he was very conscious of what he was exchanging his life for. It looks like the higher priority was not their loss of glory, but his own (cf Heb 12:2). This understanding best explains all the facts.

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brothers, beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.

3:6-10 Timothy brought good news (same word as gospel) of their faith. They were still believing the good news of the Messiah who would reward His faithful servants (Isa 40:10). Therefore Paul was encouraged that all the effort he had expended and distress he had experienced in the development of their faith was worth it. The apostle who died daily in his service to Christ (1Cor 15:31 -another passage in which Paul anticipates reward resulting from “successful” service) is revived (now we live) by the prospect of the Thessalonians being steadfast in their faith. This is conditional, and not a reference to their justification, but rather their progression in the faith, which would result in joy for Paul at the judgment seat of Christ. When Paul stands before Christ (2Cor 5:9-10) to be recompensed for his deeds, he would have joy on account of the sanctification of the Thessalonians, as a result of his ministry. This is why he was praying exceedingly that he would be able to see them and perfect (bring to completion for service -Mt 4:21 as in mending nets) what was lacking in their faith. To “perfect” is used for restoring someone overtaken in a fault (Gal 6:1), and being prepared for good works (Heb 10:5; 13:21). A fully trained, reproductive disciple is like his/her discipler (Lk 6:40), able to repeat the process with others. The Thessalonians were lacking an understanding of the process of the Christian life which Paul fervently wanted to correct, so they wouldn't go off track under the stress of afflictions. Obviously, they were not deficient in their understanding of Christ's substitutionary atonement, for they were clearly born again. So the lack has to be concerning their progress in the faith (Phil 1:25).

Colossians 1:22...to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight --- 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.

3:11-13 So Paul prays that God would direct him to see them, and that the Lord would make them increase and abound in love. “Increase” and “abound” are in the optative mood, used to express the strongest possible wish for something to happen. Paul wants their love to abound so they might be blameless in holiness when they stand before the judgment seat. Failure to love as Christ loved is blameworthy. Note the priority of love: one another, fellow believers in the Body, have precedence over others. This is consistent with Jesus' great command for believers in John 13:34-35. The love (agapao – self sacrifice for another's best interest) which Paul modeled for them, in leading them to faith, and guiding them to maturity, is the same love they needed to demonstrate toward others. Only then can their hearts be established blameless and holy before God on the day of judgment (Mt 24:44).

Application: If we abound in our love toward each other, we'll do well when Christ returns.

Prayer: Lord, thanks that following You is worth it, regardless of the cost; help me love others as You have loved me. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 4 The Will of God and the Rapture

4:1 Finally then, brothers, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, that you abound more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God: your sanctification, that you abstain from sexual immorality, 4 that each one of you know how to possess himself of his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust, even as the Gentiles who don’t know God; 6 that no one should take advantage of and wrong/defraud a brother or sister in this matter; because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as also we forewarned you and testified. 7 For God called us not for uncleanness, but in sanctification. 8 Therefore he who rejects this doesn’t reject man, but God, who has also given his Holy Spirit to you.

9 But concerning brotherly love, you have no need that one write to you. For you yourselves are taught by God to love one another, 10 for indeed you do it toward all the brothers who are in all Macedonia. But we exhort you, brothers, that you abound more and more; 11 and that you make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, even as we instructed you; 12 that you may walk honorably/honestly toward those who are outside, and may have need of nothing.

13 But we don’t want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you don’t grieve like the rest, who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in (union with) Jesus. 15 For this we tell you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left to the coming of the Lord, will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with God’s trumpet. The dead in (union with) Christ will rise first, 17 then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore comfort/encourage one another with these words.

Observations: 4:1-8 Paul exhorts the believers to live so they please God. This is parallel to his instructions in Colossians 1, and consistent with the OT righteousness God blesses/rewards (careful to do what is right in His sight). Most people are curious about the will of God for aspects of their life, such as school, job, spouse, house, etc., known as the “subjective will of God” (things that vary from person to person). The attitude is sometimes: “Well, I want to know God's will, and then I'll decide whether or not I like it, and will do it.” God's will is what is good, acceptable/pleasing, and perfect (Rm 12:1-2), because those are characteristics of God. “Perfect” implies that anything else is second best. “Good” implies that anything else is not so good. “Pleasing” implies that if we knew all that God knows, we would be as pleased with suffering as with comfort. Most people don't know or experience God's will because they are not committed to doing it (Jn 7:17). God is not going to communicate His subjective will to us if we're not obeying His objective will (what He's commanded). See the sermon on the Will of God on Truthbase.net.

One revelation of the will of God is clearly specified in this passage: our sanctification-holiness, the second aspect of our salvation, necessary for glorification. We can chose to sanctify ourselves by obeying the truth (1Pt 1:22) or remain unholy. The specific will of God Paul commanded is sexual holiness, as in abstaining from immorality/fornication. To be holy is separate or distinct from those around us. Paul elaborates that this means possessing or controlling one's passions-emotions-desires so that one lives honorably, not in the passion of lust, as the Gentiles do. Those who lack this holiness will not see God (Heb 12:14), and will lose their inheritance in the Kingdom (1Cor 6:9; Eph 5:5). God will particularly avenge those who take advantage of or defraud a brother/sister in this area. To defraud is to promise one thing and deliver another. Many people use sex as a means of boosting their worth and value at the expense of another. Paul solemnly testifies that God will discipline those who defraud. God has called us to uncleanness, but glory and virtue (2Pt 3:1) which have their root in holiness or sanctification. Sexual sin, as do all others start in our mind/value system, when we falsely believe that our desires are better and more important than God's desire for us. God isn't withholding something good from us (remember Satan's lie in Genesis 3?), but is keeping us from something that isn't good for us at the present time. If we trust that God will give what's best, when it's best, we'll avoid a lot of trouble and scars that can hamper us for the rest of our lives. Beware of defining your spirituality by your sexuality, or any single benchmark. Success or failure in this area does not equate with being godly or ungodly. However, causing others to stumble and sin will reap judgment. See comments on 1Corinthians 6:18. The person who rejects the revelation of Scripture doesn't reject man, but God, because the Spirit of God is the Spirit of Truth. The natural man/woman who follows only animal passions is not following the Spirit, but has quenched Him (1Thess 5:19).

4:9-12 Paul says that his audience doesn't need instruction in philos (friendly love) or in eros (erotic love), a Greek term not used in the NT.  In contrast, Paul says they need philadelphia (brotherly love), because God has taught them to love each other by His example of sacrificing Himself for them. Note another of the one another passages. The priority is fellow members of the family of God.

John 15:12 "This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. 17 I command these things to you, that you may love one another.”

Paul also instructs them to lead exemplary lives toward unbelievers, working to provide for their own needs so they are self-sufficient. This does not mean that believers should all engage in manual labor, but that one does productive rather than speculative labor. See comments on Ephesians 4:28.

4:13-18 This is the famous Rapture passage. Paul had heard of their faith and love from Timothy in 3:6, but their hope wasn't mentioned. So Paul corrects their wrong thinking, which was that those who had died have missed the return of Christ, and they would not be with them in heaven. Believers grieve when a loved one dies, but should not grieve like worldlings do. We grieve when we lose something of value, and don't think it can be replaced or restored. But God is more than adequate for any of our needs (see “Can God Meet Emotional Needs” on Truthbase.net), and can replace any relationship with Himself or another person if that were best. Believers will also see each other again when Christ returns. Those who have fallen asleep, Paul's way of describing death, since physical death is a temporary condition, will be resurrected (Dan 12:3). When Christ returns to set up His Messianic Kingdom, those who died “in union with Christ” will first be resurrected, then those who are living will be raptured to meet the Lord in the air (Acts 1:9), together with them. The word “rapture” means to be caught up, used in Acts 8:39 of Philip being taken away from the eunuch, and in 2Corinthians 12:2-4 of Paul's visit to heaven. Revelation 12:5 is also applicable.

There are three different major views on the timing of the rapture, all in reference to the Tribulation: Pre, Mid, and Post Tribulation. The Tribulation is the Seventieth Week (period of seven years) of Daniel's prophecy in 9:27. The Pre-trib people believe Christ will return and the Rapture will occur before the Tribulation. The Mid-trib folks argue that the Rapture will occur in the middle of the seven years. And the Post-tribs believe believers will go through the Tribulation and be raptured at the end of it. Amillennialists, who don't believe that there is a future Messianic Kingdom, consider it all poetry to be ignored.

Although it doesn't make a huge difference in how one lives to please God, the Pre-trib position has the best support, both logically and Scripturally. Why would Christ come to take believers up to heaven (John 14:1-3) only to immediately return to earth again for the Kingdom. The marriage feast of the Lamb, with His Bride, the Church in heaven, would be an appropriate way to pass the time of the Tribulation on earth. Ancient wedding feasts often lasted seven days. The imminency of Matthew 24:36, 42-46, Revelation 3:10, and an argument we'll see in 2Thessalonians 2:6-8 are good places to start your study. Don't spend too much time studying the issue; making disciples is much more profitable and pleasing to God. But if you want to study the issue in more depth, see J. Dwight Pentecost's “Things To Come.” The teaching of the Rapture should encourage and comfort believers (4:18).

Application: God's will is our sanctification/holiness; develop it as you await His return.

Prayer: God, thanks that You know what's best for me, and have communicated it in a way I can understand; don't let me be deceived but help me delight in doing Your will. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 5 Sanctified Compeletely

5:1 But concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need that anything be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night. 3 For when they are saying, "Peace and safety," then sudden destruction will come on them, like birth pains on a pregnant woman; and they will in no way escape. 4 But you, brothers, aren’t in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief. 5 You are all children of light, and children of the day. We don’t belong to the night, nor to darkness,

6 so then let’s not sleep, as the rest do, but let’s watch and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep in the night, and those who are drunk are drunk in the night. 8 But let us, since we belong to the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and, for a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God didn’t appoint/set us toward wrath, but to the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

11 Therefore exhort/encourage one another, and build each other up, even as you also do. 12 But we beg you, brothers, to know/acknowledge those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you, 13 and to respect and honor them in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 We exhort you, brothers, admonish the disorderly, comfort the fainthearted, support the weak, be patient toward all. 15 See that no one returns evil for evil to anyone, but always follow after that which is good, for one another, and for all.

16 Rejoice always. 17 Pray without ceasing. 18 In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Don’t quench the Spirit. 20 Don’t despise prophesies. 21 Test all things, and hold firmly that which is good. 22 Abstain from every form/appearance of evil.

23 May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who will also do it. 25 Brothers, pray for us. 26 Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss. 27 I solemnly command you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the holy brothers. 28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Observations: 5:1-10 Regarding the timing of the rapture the Thessalonians knew what many today forget, that no one knows the day or hour. Since the Mid-trib position posits the rapture in the middle of the Tribulation which begins with the establishment of the covenant with Israel at the beginning of the Tribulation, there would be a three and half year advance announcement of the rapture. Similarly, the post-trib position posits the rapture at the end of the Tribulation; thus the making of the covenant would give a seven year advance notice, and the breaking of the covenant with Israel by the man of sin (Dan 9:27; 2Thess 2:3) in the middle of the Tribulation would yield another three and half year notice. The Day of the Lord can refer to a day or period of God's activity or judgment (Isa 2:12; 13:9-11; Jer 46:10; Joel 1:15 2:28-32; Zeph 1:14-18; 3:14-15; 1Cor 3:13;), or the Second Coming of Christ (Joel 3:9-16; Zech. 14:1-5; Phil 1:6,10; Rev 16:12-16; 19:11-21;) the specific indication being determined by context, and sometimes multiple events are in view. Here the context would argue for judgment, which could be at the return of Christ for His saints. Coming like a thief has both the connotations of loss (2Pt 3:10; Rev 16:15); and unexpectedness (Mt 24:43; Rev 3:3). When people, like the false prophets in the OT were pronouncing peace, destruction would ruin them. Those who walk in the light, have nothing to fear. Those who slink in the darkness should fear. Since believers don't belong to the night, but the kingdom of light, they should live like it. They should watch and be sober-minded (a proper perspective on reality that leads to having one's passions governed by reason and noble objectives). The fact that Paul had to remind the Thessalonians of this indicates that there are believers who don't walk in the light. Those who do are prepared for the day, wearing the breastplate of faith and love, and have their thinking guarded by the hope of salvation/glorification. This is a reference to the defense against the dark arts (see comments on Ephesians 6). God didn't appoint (literally “set or place”) believers on the path to wrath but on the path to salvation/glorification, living together with Christ in His Kingdom. The glorification that is in view here is clear when we view Paul's two other uses of the word for “obtain” in Ephesians 1:14 and 2:13 in the next epistle:

2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, 14 to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.

Those who keep on their guard and live in faith, love and hope, will reap their reward. The same cannot be said for those who sleep in the dark.

5:11-15 In light of the fact that faithful believers will live with Christ and the unfaithful won't, Paul tells the believers to exhort one another (not evangelize the sleepers) and build each other up. A number of questions about whether a passage is addressed to believers or unbelievers can be resolved by looking at the corrective action for the “bad” behaviors. It is almost always, “obey and behave,” and almost never “believe that Jesus died for your sins.” In verse 10 Paul affirmed that Jesus did die for the Thessalonian audience so that they might live together with Him. How do you encourage and build up others in light of the return of Christ? By warning of dangers and helping others understand and obey so they will please God and do well at the judgment seat of Christ. Being a good example helps as do the appropriate words, as Paul outlined in 2:10-12, and specifies in 5:14-15 below.

Paul begs them to know or pay attention to those who minister to them, are over them in the Lord, and admonish/warn them of inappropriate, dangerous temporal values and actions. The normal reaction to being corrected is to find fault with those who have exposed our faults. Instead, Paul says we should respect, honor them in love for their willingness to risk rejection to help us.

Psalm 141:5 “Let the righteous strike me; It shall be a kindness. And let him rebuke me; It shall be as excellent oil; Let my head not refuse it. For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.”

Those who don't acknowledge anyone over them in the Lord, nor are submitted to a Biblical Body of believers (Eph 5:21) are usually deceived and headed for well-earned destruction.

It is not only the job of leaders to minister, it is the responsibility of all of us to encourage and build up others (5:11). All believers are charged to admonish/warn the unruly (those out of line), comfort (this word means to “speak alongside” as opposed to encourage which means to “call alongside”) the feeble-souled, and support (restrain/hold back) the weak. Comforting the feeble-souled is not the “there there now” but a speaking of the words or stories that move them from weakness of soul/will, to strength. Restraining the weak or those without strength to resist sin on their own is probably the better translation in light of upcoming judgment at the return of Christ. Being patient/long-suffering (fruit of the Spirit) is necessary in ministry because people have spent so many years developing and ingraining wrong values and habit patterns. God intended that the sociological dynamic of a Body of believers would provide incentive, examples and encouragement to make the Christlike changes. But when the church culture is that of sit, soak, and sour, it's time to start anew (short of an unusual Holy Spirit inspired revival of sleeping saints; usually they only wake up to throw rocks). The whole Body has the responsibility to see that no one repays evil for evil (much more evil for good, which usually happens when sin is exposed). The Body should chase after what is good for one another, and all.

5:16-22 Parallel to the section referring to being filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul gives additional instructions concerning the will of God:

• rejoicing always, because we know that in all things we are more than conquerors, headed for glory;
• pray without ceasing, because that is how we express dependence upon God and draw grace from the Vine to live contentedly above our circumstances;
• in everything give thanks, because we know that whatever God has allowed into our lives is for our benefit and He will work it together for our good;

The above three items, as commands, are God's objective will for believers, particularly since Paul specifies them as such. If we're not obeying His objective will, we won't be able to discern His subjective will for our lives. Verse 19 gives instructions regarding the more subjective will. The first is to not quench the Spirit. “Quench” is used of extinguishing a fire. In the early church, before the NT was written, the Lord made His will known through the Spirit via prophecy (see comments on 1Cor 12 and 14). The Spirit also worked then, as now, in prompting a desire to do God's will (Phil 2:13). Those who followed their own desires rather than the Spirit were “natural” rather than “spiritual” people (1Cor 2-3). To quench the Spirit was to resist His will in their lives. This was done by despising prophesies that revealed God's authoritative will to obey. This happens today when people reject the revelation of the Spirit of Truth recorded in the OT and NT. Instead of quenching the Holy Spirit and His revelation, believers should examine, test, and prove all things to know what is truth, and then hold firmly to it. Anything less is quenching the Spirit, our agent in sanctification (Rom 8:13). Paul's final warning is to abstain from every appearance of evil. There are some things which might be legitimate, but can compromise our testimony and ability to minister to others. On the other hand, Jesus partied with pagans, and was a friend of sinners, so wisdom is required to know and do God's will.

5:23-28 Paul's benediction is a commendation of peace and grace, sandwiching a desire for their sanctification (the will of God -4:3). He asks that God would sanctify them completely, so their entire being: spirit (the part of us that relates to God), soul (mind, will/values, emotions), and body would be guarded/preserved (optative mood -strong wish) blameless at the judgment seat of Christ when He returns. God is faithful to provide all we need, and His will/desire is such, since He calls us to it, but it's not automatic. God will not sanctify us against our will. We need to yield and submit to His Spirit and truth for it to occur. Otherwise, there would have been no need for the warnings and instruction in the letter. Only those who apply what Paul wrote will be blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus the Messiah. God is always faithful; we need to be too. Paul closes with a request for prayer, a reminder to express affection to all with a holy kiss, and a solemn command to read the letter to all. Finally he wishes the grace of the Lord Jesus the Messiah to be theirs.

Application: God wants all that we are to be holy, including our ambitions, thoughts, attitudes, values, feelings and actions, because that is what is best for us.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, may every aspect of my life be brought into conformity with Your will for me, so I may be blameless at Your return. Amen.

Digging Deeper:

God in a nutshell: God has a perfect will for His people that extends to every aspect of their life. He is faithful to provide all we need to bring it about if we submit to Him in every way, every day.

Build-a-Jesus: The Lord Jesus, the Messiah will return as promised, first for His Bride, the Church, and then to set up His Millennial Kingdom after the Tribulation.

Us in a nutshell: We are to be holy and blameless at the return of Christ if we know and do all that His Spirit has revealed as His will for us.

Where to Go for More:

Truthbase.net

Matthew 1-4 King and Kingdom Come

Psalm 118:1-29 Blessed Hesed

118:1 “Give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good, for His hesed/loyal covenantal love endures forever. 2 Let Israel now say that His hesed/loyal covenantal love endures forever. 3 Let the house of Aaron now say that His hesed/loyal covenantal love endures forever. 4 Now let those who fear Yahweh say that His hesed/loyal covenantal love endures forever.

5 Out of my distress, I called on Yah. Yah answered me and brought me into a spacious place/freedom. 6 Yahweh is on my side. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 7 Yahweh is on my side among those who help me. Therefore I will look in triumph at those who hate me. 8 It is better to take refuge in Yahweh, than to put confidence in man. 9 It is better to take refuge in Yahweh, than to put confidence in princes. 10 All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of Yahweh, I cut them off. 13 You pushed me back hard, to make me fall, but Yahweh helped me. 14 Yah is my strength and song. He has become my salvation. 15 The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous. "The right hand of Yahweh does valiantly. 16 The right hand of Yahweh is exalted! The right hand of Yahweh does valiantly!"

17 I will not die, but live, and declare Yah’s works. 18 Yah has punished me severely, but He has not given me over to death. 19 Open to me the gates of righteousness. I will enter into them. I will give thanks to Yah. 20 This is the gate of Yahweh; the righteous will enter into it. 21 I will give thanks to You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation. 22 The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. 23 This is Yahweh’s doing. It is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that Yahweh has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it! 25 Save us now, we beg You, Yahweh! Yahweh, we beg You, send prosperity now.

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of Yahweh! We have blessed you out of the house of Yahweh. 27 Yahweh is God, and He has given us light. Bind the sacrifice with cords, even to the horns of the altar. 28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to You. You are my God, I will exalt You. 29 Oh give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good, for His hesed/loyal covenantal love endures forever."

Observations: 118:1-4 Sandwiched between the shortest and longest chapters of the Bible, this final Hallel HalleluYah Praise Psalm deserves special attention. It opens and closes with giving thanks to Yahweh, for His goodness as shown by His hesed, or loyal covenantal love which endures forever (to those who fear Him, all others need not pray, for this doesn't apply to them).

118:5 This verse summarizes many of the psalms, and hopefully our personal experience.

118:6-16 Since God is the mighty helper and deliverer, it's foolish to put confidence in anyone or anything else. Therefore we should trust Him, and we'll wind up praising Him.

118:17-25 Recalling God's past help, psalmist looks with confidence to the God's future deliverance from the consequences of his present sin. He looks forward to entering into the gates (of the Temple/city) through which only those rightly related to God (righteous) can enter, to praise God for His deliverance. Verse 22 would apply to a leader (David) who had been rejected, but became the head of the building (Davidic Covenant/Dynasty). Jesus applied this verse to himself in Matthew 21:42.

118:26-29 These last verses show up in a lot of contemporary hymns, and probably had their original reference to the high priest coming to offer sacrifices on behalf of the people. The reference to light might be that of the priestly blessing specified in Numbers 6:22-27. The praise concludes where it started, with God's hesed, the basis of all His blessings.

Application: If we are on God's side, He will be on our side, and then, all is good.

Prayer: I praise You God, for Your hesed to me, for Your loyal love, and discipline, and deliverance, and for being the delight of my life. Thanks. Amen.

Proverbs 26:13-16 The Slimy Spiritual Sluggard

Pr 26:13 “The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion roams the streets!" 14 As the door turns on its hinges, so does the sluggard on his bed. 15 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish. He is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. 16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer with reason/discretion.“

Observations: 26:13 We just looked at the sluggard lyin' about lions making false excuses for their lying about. There were no lions in the civilized Jerusalem of Solomon's time, but then self-deceived individuals never were very good with the truth.

26:14 The reason the sluggard never gets anywhere in the spiritual life is because they think that activity is a substitute for performance. Like a door on its hinges, the sluggard moves, but in reality goes nowhere, being attached to his/her bed of escapism. At the end of the day or year, they are right back where they started, and no progress or growth has been realized.

26:15 The sluggard has false starts without accomplishment. Their hand goes in the plate (poor manners), but doesn't make it back to their mouth (unless its something unhealthily sweet). They can get all excited about something new and different, but they haven't developed the self-discipline to make their dreams (nor God's desires) a reality. They are paralyzed by the pursuit of gratifying their passions, so they can't channel their energies toward any noble task that rises above their animal instincts.

26:16 Like the total fool, a sluggard will come up with more reasons and excuses than seven wise people who try to reprove them with true evidence.

Application: If you're not making substantial progress in your spiritual life, it might be time to face the ugly truth that you're being a slimy spiritual sluggard (not pretty, nor profitable).

Prayer: God, may I never be deceived into making any of the mistakes of the sluggard, and may I welcome the reproof of those with Your wisdom, so I can achieve Your objectives for my life. Thanks. Amen.

Matthew 1-4 After 400 years of silence since Malachi, the NT opens with the book that links the two testaments. Matthew demonstrates that Jesus is the promised Messiah, rejected by His people, and shows those who accepted Him how to live in light of that rejection, so they'd be blessed in the coming kingdom (that's the purpose statement of the book, built from the unique material and emphasis of Matthew). Matthew builds his case around five discourses or sermons (chapters 5-7, 10, 13 18, 24-25) which some opine is a reflection of the first five books of Moses. You decide. The first four chapters (this post) start with genealogy (hey, it links with the OT), and include Jesus' birth, spiritual warfare with the devil, and the initial message of John, Jesus and the disciples (they all said the same thing, and if you don't understand it, you'll miss the meaning of the rest of the NT).

With the exception of John's gospel, the books of the NT are written primarily to believers who had accepted the Messiah's claims and teachings, and whose sins were forgiven. Thus their purpose is not evangelistic, but edification (building of believers' faith). John's gospel has a stated twofold purpose (John 20:30-31): that his readers might have life (believe) and have it abundantly (continue to believe), reflecting Jesus comment in John 10:10 (evangelism for the first half of the book; edification in the second).

While many miss the above truth, most people don't realize that the bulk of each gospel describes Jesus' ministry to an audience who also had their sins forgiven (covered or atoned for), by participation in the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) and the Levitical sacrificial system. Just read what God revealed about each sacrifice in Lev 1-7.

Leviticus 4:26b “So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.” 

The NT isn't about how to get forgiveness, but how to live righteously (just like God wanted in the OT). To try to make every passage talk about Jesus dying to forgive the sins of unbelievers is to distort the truth just like the perverted priests of the OT did (cf Ezekiel 13:9-11), and deprive God's people of the words of the abundant life. If you've been deceived into the thinking that the truth doesn't apply to you, you will miss the application and blessing God desires.

The first four books are called the Gospels (good news), a combination of narrative and discourse describing the Messiah's life and ministry. They were written as eyewitness accounts shortly after Christ's death  approximately ~AD 30 (why would anyone wait decades to write what happened?). There are papyrus fragments of Matthew and Mark dated to before the AD 70 destruction of the temple. See under the 7 Questions in the Sidebar for “Can God Communicate" for an overview of the reliability of Scripture, or this link for more detail.

Each gospel is written to a different audience, and they are not strict chronology but more topical (like most of the Prophets), and are arranged to make a theological point which served the needs of the audience. The first three are referred to as the syn-optic gospels because the see-together similar material. John has a different focus and purpose and correspondingly selected somewhat different material to emphasize.

See Digging Deeper for a detailed timeline of the NT, which has a link so you can download and print it. There is also a link to Ancient Evidence for Jesus from Non-Christian Sources.

Don't miss the new “Build-A-Jesus” section under Digging Deeper; we'll be developing a Biblical portrait of the Revealed Jesus, as we go through the NT.

Matthew 1 Jesus the Messiah Will Save His People as Promised

1:1 "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham became the father of Isaac. Isaac became the father of Jacob. Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah...5 Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse. 6 Jesse became the father of King David. David became the father of Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. 11 Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the exile to Babylon. 12 After the exile to Babylon...13 Zerubbabel...16 Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ/Messiah. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the exile to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was like this; for after his mother, Mary, was engaged/betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, intended to put her away/divorce secretly. 20 But when he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She shall bring forth a son. You shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins." 22 Now all this has happened, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son. They shall call his name Immanuel"; which is, being interpreted, "God with us." 24 Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took his wife to himself; 25 and didn’t know her sexually until she had brought forth her firstborn son. He named him Jesus."

Observations: 1:1-17 The book opens with the assertion that Jesus is the Messiah (= Hebrew for “Anointed”; which in Greek =”Christ”) and specifies that He is the Son of David, with the right to rule according the Davidic Covenant (2 Samuel 7), which is an unfolding of the Abrahamic Covenant (Genesis 12). The genealogy is abridged, and traces Jesus' legal ancestry through Joseph, His father, giving Him the legal right to rule. Luke traces His physical lineage through Mary all the way back to Adam (demonstrating to a Greek audience that Jesus was the “perfect man”). So, that's why there are two “different” genealogies. We'll briefly look at other genealogical issues when we get to Luke. It's worth noting that Matthew includes Gentile women in the account, indicating that God's concern is for all nations, as promised to Abraham “in you, all the families of the earth will be blessed."

1:18-25 This account is well known, but a few observations are in order. Joseph is called righteous. He didn't want to disgrace Mary by a public divorce. Note that betrothal was considered a bond broken by divorce. When we get to Matthew 19 remember that unfaithfulness during the betrothal period was grounds for divorce. One could infer or reason the necessity for a Virgin Conception (just like Abraham “reckoned a resurrection” from the available facts - Hebrews 11:17-19). If sin came through the seed of man, and the Messiah was to be a spotless lamb that didn't have to die for His own sin, so His death could be applied to the sins of others {Isaiah 53}, then He had to be human, to die in the place of man, and not have a human father to avoid the sin nature inherited from Adam {Romans 5:12}. See comments on Isaiah 7:14, the type, of which Christ is the anti-type. Just like the child in Isaiah's day was an indication that God was with the people, so too Mary's child harbingered God fulfilling His promises to His people. The Greek word for virgin is “parthenos,” the standard word for a woman who had not had sexual relations with a man.

The name Jesus indicates His mission: “to save His people from their sins,” which has a much broader application than dying for them. In future posts we'll discuss (and prove) that the NT authors used the verb “sozo” Strongs #4982 in a variety of senses, the specific meaning is determined by context. In the OT/LXX, the most frequent use was to “deliver” from enemies, a sense used in the NT. The overarching NT meaning is to “reverse the effects of the Fall”, regaining what Adam lost, seen in three aspects:

1) justification – declaration of the forgiveness of sins, and pardon from the death penalty;
2) sanctification – rebuilding towards pre-Fall holiness and a relationship with God;
3) glorification – restoration to pre-Fall glory.

Since this is a major theme of the NT, and majorly misunderstood, we'll revisit it numerous times in context. For those of you who can't wait, take a look at the noun “salvation” in Thayer's Lexicon (Strong's #4991) or nose around on Truthbase.net (1 Peter 1 is a good place to start).

Application: God is not just interested in having Jesus die for our sin, but in fulfilling His promises,
including those of saving us from the effects of sins in our lives, so He can bless us.

Prayer: God, You are ever faithful to You promises, may I live righteously so I can experience You dwelling with me throughout each day. Amen.

Matthew 2 Worshiped and Rejected

2:1 "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, 2 "Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him." 3 When King Herod heard it, he was troubled,and all Jerusalem with him. 4 Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ would be born. 5 They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is written through the prophet, 6 ‘You Bethlehem, land of Judah, are in no way least among the princes of Judah: for out of you shall come forth a governor, who shall shepherd my people, Israel.’" 7 Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem, and said, "Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him."

9 They, having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Being warned in a dream that they shouldn’t return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.

13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him." 14 He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called my son."

16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying, 18 "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more."

19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 20 "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead." 21 He arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Being warned in a dream, he withdrew into the region of Galilee, 23 and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene."

Observations: 2:1-15 Evil king Herod was not a legitimate descendent of David, but an Idumaean/Edomite, put on the throne by the Romans. His response to the news that there was a rival “King of the Jews” prophesied in the Scriptures didn't give him pause for thought, but he plotted the destruction of God's plan. He's also the guy who expanded and refurbished the temple, which just goes to show that a concern about “religion” is no substitute for righteousness. The wise guys, the Magi, were following His star which didn't behave as any known natural phenomena, and was probably a localization of God's glory (like that which guided Israel in the wilderness), or an angel with a really bright candle. The star followers foreshadow the seeking of the Messiah by Gentile nations during His millennial reign. The gifts have meaning, which, while not explained, could point to the Messiah's roles as: King (gold), Priest (frankincense was burned by the high priest), and Sacrifice (myrrh was used for burials).

2:16-23 Herod typifies the hypocritical religious institution, who would oppose the Messiah during His stay on earth. Joseph gets another dream, telling him to go to Egypt, and another to return, similar to how God protected the nation in Genesis and Exodus. Matthew relates this to Hosea 11:1. In Exodus 4:22 God called Israel His firstborn son, out of Egypt. The Messiah, as His son, both in a only begotten and Suzerain-Vassal relationship, was also called out of Egypt. There is no direct prophecy that Jesus would be a Nazarene, but Jesus being called one is in line with what the prophets said. The Nazarenes were a despised people because of their close association with the Romans. The Messiah was said to be despised (Isaiah 53; Psalm 22; Daniel 9:26). Some have suggested a word play on the Hebrew word for Branch, which is similar to Nazareth, but being despised fits Matthew's theology of a rejected Messiah better. Thus these two chapters serve as a fitting prologue to the story of the King of Kings, rejected by the Jewish establishment, but worshiped by the Gentiles.

Application: God protects His servants from opposition that would endanger the fulfillment of His purposes, but doesn't spare them the discomfort of living in an evil world.

Prayer: God, may I be quick to hear and obey like righteous Joseph, and willing to be despised for the fulfillment of Your purposes. Amen.

Matthew 3 Repentance and Authentication

3:1 "In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" 3 For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight." 4 Now John himself wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him.

6 They were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, "You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bring forth fruit worthy of repentance! 9 Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 "Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn’t bring forth good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire."

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 But John would have hindered him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?" 15 But Jesus, answering, said to him, "Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness."Then he allowed him. 16 Jesus, when he was baptized, went up directly from the water: and behold, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming to rest on him. 17 Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

Observations : 3:1-5 John the Baptist is firmly established by all the gospel writers as the voice in the wilderness of Isaiah 40 (see post, really). Isaiah 40 opens the section about the future kingdom which starts with the herald announcing the King.

Matthew usually used the phrase the “kingdom of heaven” (literally that comes from the heavens), where the other writers used the phrase the “kingdom of God” (the kingdom that comes from God) perhaps to follow the Jewish custom to avoid mentioning God's name so they wouldn't take it in vain. In any event, this is the kingdom is that promised in the OT, where the Messiah would come and rule over the righteous nation and bless them as promised. However, in the OT, they had to be blessable to be blessed. If they lived in unrighteousness and injustice, they could only expect God's wrath, not blessing. It didn't matter if they were children of Abraham (who do you think got all that discipline and wrath in the OT?), their sin would be punished.

For a total refutation of the kingdom being "the rule of God in one's heart,” for which there is no Biblical support, see Survey of Rewards on Truthbase.net and comments on Luke 17.

Isaiah 40:10 (about the King coming to reward and pay back) is key to understand in light of John the Baptist's comments about how to repent (especially in Luke 3): Stop living as if this world was all there is and start living as if the King was coming who would reward righteousness. Clean up your act, and make Him welcome.

3:6-12 Repentance is a change of mind that results in a change of actions. Baptism is used of immersing wool in a vat of dye, that can symbolize cleansing or identification (or death to self as in Romans 6). In repentance contexts it's appropriate to see it as symbolic of washing away sins.

John saw the Messiah's coming as an immersion in the Holy Spirit (in fulfillment of the New Covenant (see Jeremiah 31:31, and Joel 2), and immersion in fire (as in Malachi 3). The Messiah would make a distinction between those who were loyal to God, who would be blessed, and those who did their own thing, who would suffer. This theme is seen repeatedly in the OT; there is no indication that it will change in the NT, in fact, we'll see it reinforced repeatedly. Some responded, the entrenched religious establishment, hooked on ritual and tradition, usually didn't.

3:13-17 John's comments about Jesus are authenticated by a miracle (a pattern throughout the NT). Jesus comes to get baptized by John who at first refuses, because he knew Jesus didn't have sins to repent of. Jesus' rejoinder, “to fulfill all righteousness” is a little difficult to pin down. There is no OT command or requirement to be baptized, and Jewish baptism was usually self-immersion. If baptism is viewed as identification, then Jesus was identifying with the repentance movement, or the sins of the people which He would eventually bear. An alternative view is that the people viewed a righteous person as one that would get baptized (similarly to Jesus paying the temple tax). Another option is that Jesus was submitting to the human ritual as emblematic of submitting to the task of taking the people's sins upon Himself. He authenticates John's ministry by participating in it, and Jesus gets authenticated by the Father. In any event, the Father was well pleased with Jesus' actions and bestowed the Holy Spirit upon Him, not just as a token of His favor, but a symbol of the anointing of the Messiah King. Philippians 2 indicates that Jesus emptied Himself of His glory/power in His sojourn on earth, and since the Holy Spirit is the spirit of power and glory, the Father is empowering Him for His work, much the same way as He empowered kings and prophets in the OT, and believers in NT and modern times.

Application: Living righteously in light of the Kingdom of God is best way to live if you want to experience God's pleasure rather than pain.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, forgive me for denying Your promises and commands, and living for myself, as if this world is all there is; show me how to bring forth fruits consistent with my repentance, and live for You. Thanks. Amen.

Matthew 4 Passing the Test of the Temporal

4:1 "Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward. 3 The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But he answered, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’"5 Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will put his angels in charge of you.’ and, ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you don’t dash your foot against a stone.’" 7 Jesus said to him, "Again, it is written, ‘You shall not test the Lord, your God.’"8 Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory. 9 He said to him, "I will give you all of these things, if you will fall down and worship me." 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’"11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and served him.

12 Now when Jesus heard that John was delivered up, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying, 15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, 16 the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, to those who sat in the region and shadow of death, to them light has dawned." 17 From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, "Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand."

18 Walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men."20 They immediately left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them. 22 They immediately left the boat and their father, and followed him.

23 Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. 24 The report about him went out into all Syria. They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments, possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them. 25 Great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond the Jordan followed him."

Observations: 4:1-11 Being led by the Spirit into testing by Satan, Jesus successfully endures the test, even in a physically weakened state. Temptation is not sin, embracing it is (James 1:14-15). He was tempted in the same areas that Eve was (see Genesis 3 post), and we are (see 1 John 2:13): Pleasure (bread), Power (security, significance – forcing God to take care of Him), Possessions (kingdoms). God created Adam and Eve (and you and me) with these desires, and they are good (even Jesus had them). In fact, it was God's will for Jesus to eat, and be ministered to by angels (Hebrews 1:14), and rule over all kingdoms. However, Satan's will for our lives is a shortcut. If we do things Satan's way (or our way, which usually are one and the same) rather than God's way, we lose (like Adam and Eve) rather than win (like Jesus).

Hebrews 4:15 "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Notice that Satan knew and twisted Scripture misquoting (Psalm 91:11 leaves out “and guard you in all your ways”) it in an effort to dissuade Jesus from doing the Father's will. Satan's major weapon is deception/lying, but Jesus uses the Sword of the Spirit (the word of God - Ephesians 6) to vanquish the lies. See series: Defense Against the Dark Arts on Truthbase.net for learning how to be successful in spiritual warfare. Unless we can wield the sword of Truth, we'll be skewered by Satan's lies.

4:12-17 Jesus ministered for about a year (John 1-4, see chart under Digging Deeper) until John was imprisoned. Then when the herald had finished his work Matthew records Jesus' ministry in Galilee, in accord with the Messianic prophecies of Isaiah 9:1-2. Jesus preaches the same message as John, repent in light of the coming kingdom (He sends out the apostles with the same message as well).

4:18-25 Jesus calls his disciples from living for the temporal and challenges them to live for the eternal. They immediately make the choice that eternity outweighs the temporal, and follow Him. We'll talk more about discipleship in Mark, the manual of discipleship. Jesus taught in the synagogues, as well as proclaimed the good news (gospel) about the kingdom (note, that there is no mention of the cross in all this). He authenticates the message with miracles. Note too the distinction between sickness and demonic possession. Multitudes followed. What will He say to them? Stay tuned for the Sermon on the Mount in the next post.

Application: The successful follower of Jesus can use Truth to avoid the temporal temptations of Satan to live for the eternal benefits of Christ.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, may I follow You and Your example of submitting to the Father's will, and living for Your fulfillment of my desires, both now and in the world to come. Amen.

Digging Deeper:

The url's are included in case you have trouble with the link. Swartzentrover has a treasure trove of information, some more useful than other links, which would be worth exploring after you finish Revelation.

Timeline of the Harmony of the Gospels

Super Detailed Timeline

http://www.swartzentrover.com/cotor/bible/Timelines/10%20BC-110%20AD.htm

Ancient Evidence for Jesus from Non-Christian Sources http://www.swartzentrover.com/cotor/bible/Bible/NT/Gospel%20&%20Acts/Non-Christian%20Sources01.htm

The Bible's Manuscript Evidence:

http://www.debate.org.uk/debate-topics/historical/the-bible-and-the-quran/the-bibles-manuscript-evidence/

God in a nutshell: God is working out His plan to bless the world through the seed of Abraham. His kingdom promises are not forgotten, and He calls people to live for them. He authenticates His servants when they deliver His message. He doesn't exempt them from difficulty, but gives grace and glory for service.

Build-A-Jesus : Since so many people talk about “being like Jesus” or being Christlike, without a clue to the “real” Jesus (rather than that of the oral tradition they hear at Christmas and Easter), I thought it would be beneficial to build a balanced, Biblical view of our Awesome Lord (who is nothing like the helpless babe in the manger). I'll just highlight the aspects of Jesus that the chapters we consider emphasize. You more technically oriented might want to start a spreadsheet, listing the traits or characteristic or actions along one axis, and the references along the other. As your understanding of the revealed person of Christ grows, you might need to expand or combine the traits. There is no right answer, but your final portrait should be pretty close to the original subject. (No Impressionists allowed, sorry.)

Want to be like Jesus? Then know how to handle the Truth, resist the temporal temptations of Satan, submit to the Father's will, call others to repentance, and make disciples. A few miracles couldn't hurt either.

Us in a nutshell: We need to repent (change our mind) about living for this world, as if this is all there is (like Herod), and there is no kingdom coming as promised in the OT. We need to get a grip on Truth that won't get away from us when confronted by Satan's lies. We need to view fishing for men as superior to fishing for things that stink after a few days.

Where to Go for More:

Truthbase.net

Matthew 1-4 (complete text)

Matthew 1

1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham became the father of Isaac. Isaac became the father of Jacob. Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron. Hezron became the father of Ram. 4 Ram became the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon. Nahshon became the father of Salmon. 5 Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse. 6 Jesse became the father of King David. David became the father of Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon became the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam became the father of Abijah. Abijah became the father of Asa. 8 Asa became the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat became the father of Joram. Joram became the father of Uzziah. 9 Uzziah became the father of Jotham. Jotham became the father of Ahaz. Ahaz became the father of Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh. Manasseh became the father of Amon. Amon became the father of Josiah. 11 Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the exile to Babylon. 12 After the exile to Babylon, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel became the father of Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel became the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim. Eliakim became the father of Azor. 14 Azor became the father of Sadoc. Sadoc became the father of Achim. Achim became the father of Eliud. 15 Eliud became the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan. Matthan became the father of Jacob. 16 Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the exile to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was like this; for after his mother, Mary, was engaged to Joseph, before they came together, she was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, intended to put her away secretly. 20 But when he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She shall bring forth a son. You shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins." 22 Now all this has happened, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son. They shall call his name Immanuel"; which is, being interpreted, "God with us." 24 Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took his wife to himself; 25 and didn’t know her sexually until she had brought forth her firstborn son. He named him Jesus.

Matthew 2

2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, 2 "Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him." 3 When King Herod heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ would be born. 5 They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is written through the prophet, 6 ‘You Bethlehem, land of Judah, are in no way least among the princes of Judah: for out of you shall come forth a governor, who shall shepherd my people, Israel.’" 7 Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem, and said, "Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him."

9 They, having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Being warned in a dream that they shouldn’t return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.

13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him." 14 He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called my son."

16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying, 18 "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more."

19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 20 "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead." 21 He arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Being warned in a dream, he withdrew into the region of Galilee, 23 and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene."

Matthew 3

4:1 In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" 3 For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight." 4 Now John himself wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him. 6 They were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, "You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bring forth fruit worthy of repentance! 9 Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 "Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn’t bring forth good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire."

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 But John would have hindered him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?" 15 But Jesus, answering, said to him, "Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfil all righteousness."Then he allowed him. 16 Jesus, when he was baptized, went up directly from the water: and behold, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming on him. 17 Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

Matthew 4

4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward. 3 The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But he answered, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’"5 Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will put his angels in charge of you.’ and, ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you don’t dash your foot against a stone.’" 7 Jesus said to him, "Again, it is written, ‘You shall not test the Lord, your God.’"8 Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory. 9 He said to him, "I will give you all of these things, if you will fall down and worship me." 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Get behind me,Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’"11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and served him.

12 Now when Jesus heard that John was delivered up, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying, 15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, 16 the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, to those who sat in the region and shadow of death, to them light has dawned." 17 From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, "Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand."

18 Walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men."20 They immediately left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them. 22 They immediately left the boat and their father, and followed him.

23 Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. 24 The report about him went out into all Syria. They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments, possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them. 25 Great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond the Jordan followed him.