There is a transition in Matthew here. It’s minor, but there nonetheless. After a significant section dealing with Jesus’ teaching, now we begin to see some movement and actions.

Jesus heals a leper, showing that He can make unclean things clean.

He then marvels at the faith of a Gentile and heals the centurion’s servant.

Then Peter’s mother-in-law (he’s married!) is healed as are many others.

Then Jesus seems to be a difficult man (though I question whether these excuses are legit – you’d be home if your father was dying) and pushes some buttons.

He then shows power in two supernatural actions – calming the storm and freeing the men from demons. He is the King, of Israel and of the supernatural, of the storm and of our hearts!

Jesus teaching as one who has authority should not be surprising, He is the embodiment of the Word (Jn 1:1). He gets what the Father was saying to us and for us. He is the interpretation and the source and…

He is the Word!

What do you make, then of chapter 7 – the end of the Sermon on the Mount? Where the first 2/3 deal with right behavior, this part reminds us of our place. Our heart matters and the deception of right behavior is pride and judgmental attitudes. Are you doing what is right and remaining humble? This is a good check for you and I!

If I were diagramming the Sermon on the Mount (and Jesus’ ministry!), I’d start with 6:33 and point all the lines to it! Why don’t we lie, cheat, murder and steal? We seek God’s kingdom and HIS righteousness. Why don’t we pray, give, fast or do good deeds for our own glory? It isn’t about us and never will be – it’s Him we live for and glorify. He is worthy of all of us. We give because He gave first! We pray because only He can do what we need! We submit and are humble because we know our place!

We seek Him first and His righteousness and that guides us. We even understand that money isn’t king, so we don’t live like it. We also learn to trust and anxiety has no true power because of Him. How are we at living this way?

What is your reaction to the Sermon on the Mount? Often we have a favorite part or two, but to look at it as a whole creates a sense that this teaching is revolutionary. For example, many of us cling to Amazing Grace (rightfully so!) then live however we want – and Jesus says “blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” followed by “you must be perfect therefore as my Heavenly Father is perfect.” Is your walk with God leading to more righteousness? What are your “cop out” moments? Who are you when alone? I know there are times when I struggle to do what’s right.

It is His grace that makes us righteous, but our behaviors are supposed to come into line with His over time. That’s sanctification! Unending grace and a worshipful response – obedience to the Spirit and a real relationship with Him.

This love leads us to share it. This grace leads us to repentance. Then Jesus raises the bar. Not murder or adultery are the start of sin, but the thoughts of anger and lust. What if we followed Him? What if we put aside all ourself and let Him lead?

Note a couple things: Jesus is tempted and Satan tries to use misquoted scripture to work against Him. Jesus then quotes Deuteronomy to combat his advances. Further, Satan tempts Jesus with things that only Jesus can do/access. He does the same with us, he tempts us within the range of what we could/might do. Satan won’t ask me to turn stones to bread, but will tempt me to speak wrongly at the wrong time or to look too long, or… this is how he works! The fact that Jesus is tempted by Satan in these ways proves Jesus is God.

It’s curious that when John gets arrested, Jesus sneaks away. He’s aware of the times and climate and acts accordingly – by the Spirit’s prompting.

Lastly, the ministry starts, disciples are called and many follow. However, comparing to the other Gospels leaves us pretty sure that the beginning of chapter 4 and the end of the chapter could be 18 months apart. Does that surprise you?

“Repent” was a common concept in the Roman Empire. Often a herald would enter a fringe town on the edge of rebellion and beckon them to “change their minds” or “repent.” The ideal was for the town to stop rebelling, begin to understand what was imminent and to become Roman. John the Baptist is calling for a similar mindset. The kingdom of heaven was close (Jesus) and called for a new mindset as well as a new lifestyle to be close to the new king. It meant a new mindset and a new way of life. Does repentance mean the same today? Why or why not?

Jesus’ baptism was different than all the others. “Fulfilling all righteousness” seems to be more to refer to Jesus’ response to obedience to the Father rather than a need for Him to become righteous. Read about it here. The dove falling and the voice confirm that Jesus is who He says He is.

Lots to say here. Many believe Jesus is almost 2 years old when the wise men arrive! So why are they still in Bethlehem? Scholars believe that perhaps Mary and Joseph decided to live in the city of David’s origins (farm town for for a king!). Yet after this experience, they flee to Egypt and when they move back, they fly up to Nazareth for safety far from Jerusalem (and Herod’s son).

This makes perfect sense and lines up with the text.

Nazareth is a word derived from “nazer” which means “shoot” – Jesus is an offshoot of the line of David, so Nazareth seems like a good place! It is near where Jonah grew up and has some people living there who are looking for the Messiah- yet will have trouble trusting it is Him when He starts His ministry! (Lk 4:17ff)

Check it out! What are you seeing?

Matthew introduces us to Jesus by tying Him quickly to the grand narrative! We need a Messiah from David’s line and this leads us to Abraham. Matthew points out three genealogical lines that total 14 generations each. This a curious number and leaves us wondering why 14 matters so much. Many have written many possibilities: 1) in Hebrew, letters and numbers are connected. If you “add” the name of David, you get 14. This gave 14 a kingly connection. Three “14’s” is maybe saying “king, king, king” in a significant way, like “holy, holy, holy.” 2) it also could be a connection to the number 7, which reflects perfection. 3) Matthew desires to draw connections between these 3 phases of Jewish history. All of the key phases! The father/start of the people, the greatest king and the darkest hour. Jesus fixes it all! He’s the king, the obedient son of the Father and the light in the darkness. Perhaps it’s all three. Matthew starts with a bang!

Compare Luke’s account from Mary’s perspective to Matthew’s view of Joseph. We get the whole story this way! What an amazing thing to get almost the full story. We can trust these accounts!

Whether you realized it or not, if you are doing the reading plan found at http://www.parkhillschurch.com or on the app (Park Hills Church in most app stores), we are going to read the entire New Testament together. It is my hope to maintain a blog that shares a few thoughts each day from the reading and work through it together.

Some initial ground rules:

1) These thoughts and musings are my own and will give away some leanings theologically. I will attempt to stay in a neutral lane if possible, but can’t guarantee it at all times.

2) I welcome any discussion or questions. I may not always say what I really mean to say. Your sought clarification will help define me a bit and I welcome that!

3) Let’s be charitable.

4) Jesus changed the world and some of the things He said and did unsettled the governments, religious establishments and hearts. We should expect the same. Be prepared!

5) Do your best! No one is grading or watching you when reading, but let’s give it out all! We are hoping to develop habits that draw us to Him.

Get ready for the next post today that will dive into Matthew!

What. A. Day!

God laid an idea on my heart almost 8 years ago. My professor thought it was unique and brilliant. I was inspired and surprised. What if a church used its strongest assets and multiplied? This idea embraced live preaching, utilized inexpensive rental practices and taught interns how to pastor churches well. Today was the first public step in making it all a reality!

I slept horribly. Crazy dreams and an antsy spirit made an early morning feel even earlier. I woke up and read my sermon over again. I prayed and loaded the van. Well, I tried to load the van.

Then we set up and spent some time practicing and working out a few issues.

The whole team arrived and we prayed together, not sure what to expect.

Then people started showing up and we were off to the races!

I’ll be processing this for weeks and my thoughts are definitely not complete at this point. Here’s what I do know: God is great! We started another campus of Park Hills! I am grateful for a great launch team! Now the real work begins! Praise God!