Author: hillturnfs

Brief summary of Matthew:

God is loving, kind, just, forgiving, and longsuffering.
God is all powerful, all knowing and God is everywhere.

God made the heavens, the earth, man and everything in our world. God established physical and spiritual laws to govern His creation. Man was created to serve God and have fellowship with Him as sons and daughters for eternity in heaven. A physical life on earth was to be a time of testing to determine if man chose God and heaven or Satan and hell.  God and His fallen creature, Satan, have been in a struggle for earth and man since their creation. God gave the earth to Adam and Satan stole it. Sin, death and corruption entered the world. God sent His Son Jesus to defeat Satan and the sin, death and corruption of the earth through Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection in order to regain control of creation.

Man was then restored to fellowship with God and eternal life without sin by the grace of God through acceptance of God and His Christ, repentance of sin and living for Jesus. God has provided an owner’s manual, the Word of God, the Holy Bible, to guide us in our walk with God on this earth.  God’s Holy Spirit is also placed in us to guide us and help us. We are called to emulate Jesus Christ in all we say and do. We are called to be a shining example of God and to do good works, We are to be a witness to the truth of the gospel of Christ for the salvation of all non-believers through belief in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.  May God make His face shine upon you!

Epilogue:
We all know the story of the arrest, trial and crucifixion of Jesus. Jesus ate his last meal with His disciples, the Lord’s Supper, where He described to them the new covenant going forward due to His blood being shed on the cross for them. After going to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray Jesus was arrested, tried in secret and sentenced to die.  Jesus was taken before the Roman governor, Pilate, because only the Romans could execute someone. Pilate confirmed the sentence and at 9:00 am on Passover Jesus was nailed to the cross and at 3:00 PM Jesus died. Jesus was buried before sundown according to Jewish custom and He rose from the dead three days later.

Temple sacrifices were at 3:00 PM sharp. Jesus died at that exact time because on that day Jesus was the sacrifice for us all, the only sacrifice that would ever be needed for the forgiveness of sins for all men past, present and future. God signified that by ripping the veil in front of the Holy of Holies where the ark was kept and where God’s presence was.  This curtain was sixty feet tall, thirty feet wide and an inch thick and very heavy. Only God could rip it down its entire length. No longer would only one man once a year be allowed in God’s presence. Through Jesus each person now has unfettered access to God 24/7 and our bodies have become God’s temple. Animal sacrifices are no longer necessary to cover sins that have been forgiven once and for all by the death of Jesus.

Crucifixion was such a terrible way to die the Romans outlawed it shortly after the death of Jesus. Victims were normally left on the cross to rot. Eventually the remains were thrown on the garbage dump for the dogs, carrion and insects to finish off.  God intervened to make sure Jesus was removed from the cross shortly after his death by a rich disciple named Joseph of Arimathea who then prepared Jesus for burial and entombed him in a new rock tomb before sundown as was the Jewish custom.  Because of Jesus dying on the cross for us God made a promise to forgive our sins if we believe in Jesus and and ask for forgiveness. God cannot lie nor can He break a promise. Think of it! We now have our fellowship restored with God and can enjoy eternal life in heaven with the Father all because Jesus died in our place. Jesus paid our sin debt. That’s why we call Jesus Lord. That’s why we call Jesus Savior.

The second promise God made because of Jesus’ death was to write His laws on our hearts with His Holy Spirit so we could be faithful and have access to God in prayer. Think of it! In Old Testament times only kings, prophets or priests could talk with God. God now says all people have access to Him through the sacrifice made by Jesus on the cross.  Our sins have been forgiven and when God looks at us He sees only the righteousness of His beloved Son which Jesus bestowed upon us when he took our sins away. Jesus got our sin and we got His righteousness. We didn’t deserve it but God loved us that much. The mercy and grace of our God is unfathomable.

More parables:

1. The lost sheep – A shepherd missing one lamb from his flock will go in search of it.

2. Unforgiving servant – A servant who owed the king a large sum was shown mercy. The same servant then turned around and did not grant mercy to a fellow servant who owed him a trifling sum and had him imprisoned. When the king learned of this the first servant was also imprisoned and made to repay his debt to the king.

3. Workers in the vineyard – A vineyard owner needed workers and hired several during the course of the day at different times. At the end of the day the owner paid all the workers the same wage even they had worked different lengths of time. This caused the workers who had worked longer to grumble. It’s the owner’s business if he wants to be generous and reward everyone equally.

4. Ungrateful tenant – A vineyard owner leased his vineyard to tenants and when rent was due he sent his servant to collect the rent but he was beaten. Other servants were sent to collect the rent and they also were beaten, stoned or killed. Finally the owner sent his son who was also killed. The vineyard owner punished the transgressors.

5. Wedding banquet – A man’s son was getting married and invitations were sent out to attend the banquet but nobody showed up. The father had his servant go into the street and bring in any who would come to fill the banquet hall.

The parables clearly show us some of God’s attributes. God loves us; God is merciful; God is generous; God is just; God is longsuffering; God is kind. When the Jews rejected Jesus as the Messiah God turned to the Gentiles to build the church of God.  Our church age started at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down from heaven to indwell the believer and it will end when the Rapture takes the church to heaven. God will then turn back to Israel for the last seven years of human history before the Second Advent of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Jesus makes it clear those who follow Him will be persecuted so bow up and be ready for it. We are to defend ourselves if physically attacked but otherwise do not respond to violence. Jesus said even family will turn against you. Be faithful until the end and the kingdom of God awaits you.  If you suffer persecution it’s because God allows it up to a point. God has numbered your days and no amount of persecution can cut short the number of days God has allotted you. Everyone who has ever lived will one day know the truth of the gospel and kneel before the throne of Jesus Christ on the great Day of the Lord.

By claiming to be the Lord of the Sabbath Jesus was identifying Himself as God Almighty. Restoring a withered hand in the synagogue was an act of creation which further identified Jesus as God. When Jesus cast out demons He was proving that the kingdom of God was overthrowing Satan’s kingdom.  Those who are humble will be great in heaven and vice versa. Many of those we expect to be exalted in heaven will be on the bottom rung. Heaven will be full of surprises. Jesus confirms that angels are assigned to protect both people and nations.

For example, the archangel Michael is the protector of Israel. Angels not only protect us, they intercede with God on our behalf. Angels number in the millions and spiritual warfare is going on around us continually.  The gospels are “Cliff Notes” on the life and ministry of Jesus and you should know them inside and out. God touches only on those items needed to sustain the narrative so we understand the basic story and then God adds truths about the kingdom He wants us to know. The gospels are summary outlines that jump around a lot but somehow the reader gets the picture. God doesn’t do fluff. Everything in all four gospel accounts is there for a specific purpose.

Olivet discourse:
This is a famous prophecy from God Himself. It’s true the signs Jesus mentions for the end times are in every generation but not to the extent they are just before the second coming of Jesus (i.e. wars, peoples and countries fighting, famines, earthquakes and lawlessness). What hasn’t happened yet is Christians being persecuted on a large scale and executed for not renouncing their faith in God.  We see it increasingly in China and the Middle East and even secular America is starting to target the Christian faith. This is only the beginning. When the persecution starts in earnest it will result in millions of Christians being beheaded. These will be the saints in heaven crying out for God to judge the nations.

Jesus also said there would be a great falling away of the church due to false teachings and false prophets fooling the faithful. We need to know God’s Word intimately so we can make sure any teachings don’t contradict Scripture. We don’t need the opinions of others, we need confirmation in the Bible.  Jesus said even the elect will be fooled so depend on prayer and the Holy Spirit to warn you of evil men. It seems to me a majority of church denominations will be corrupted so it’s up to each of us to decide for ourselves and not be led like sheep to the slaughter.  Don’t listen to me either; look for yourself.

Parable of the ten virgins – Five virgins were waiting for the bridegroom with lamps full of oil while five had lamps without oil. When the bridegroom came to the banquet only the virgins with lamps full of oil were allowed to enter. The other virgins were turned away because they were unprepared. I’m asking you to be prepared or suffer the same fate as these virgins. The parable of the talents carries the same message to be ready.  I’m astounded when Christians treat Jews badly. Don’t they know we will all be judged on how we treat Israel and the Jewish people? God is jealous of His chosen people. All you have to do is look at all the wars where Israel was attacked and any fool should be able to see when Israel wins repeatedly against 1,000 to one odds that God is fighting for them. Harm the Jewish people at your own peril.

As for me, I love Israel and the Jewish people because we Gentiles have received salvation through the Jews and we have all been blessed through Abraham as God promised. My Lord and Savior is a Jewish rabbi.  If I hated the Jews I would then have to hate Jesus because He is a Jew.  It makes no sense.  Love the Jewish people like family because they are.  The Jewish people are my brothers and sisters and I will die for them if need be. You need to evaluate things and decide now where you stand on this issue and speak out before things get worse.  Satan hates the Jewish people most of all and he has stirred up hatred for the Jews throughout history.  Don’t be influenced.

One of the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus was he would teach in parables. Parables are simple stories, metaphors, that everyone can understand which teach truths about the kingdom of God. Why is this? To make sure the message is clear without any misunderstanding as to its meaning.  Parables are good because they reveal truth to those who are ready to receive the spiritual message while concealing the truth from those not ready. Non-Christians and most Jews can read the parables all day long and get nothing from it. Parables are clear only if the Holy spirit has convicted your heart of your sin. You can’t receive salvation without an invitation from the Holy Spirit.

Many of the parables we can remember from Sunday School:

1. The sower – Seed sown on good soil will give abundant crops
2. Tares in the wheat – Weeds will be separated from the wheat at the harvest and burned up
3. The fishing net – When the full net is pulled in the good fish are harvested and the bad fish thrown away.
4. The mustard seed – The smallest seed grows into the biggest plant and is like the kingdom of heaven
5. The pearl- When you find something of great value sell all you have to possess it

For the longest time I couldn’t understand why everybody isn’t a Christian because the truth is so clear to me it’s like being on the big screen at the movies. According to Scripture Satan has blinded the unbeliever and when the gospel seed is planted in the unbeliever Satan snatches the Word from their hearts before it can take root.  The Jews are a special case because God has blinded them Himself until the end time because they rejected Jesus as the Messiah and crucified Him. As further punishment God allowed the Romans to destroy Jerusalem and scatter the Jewish people throughout the world for 2,000 years. The Jews are still God’s chosen people and He said He would recall them home to re-establish Israel, which happened in 1948.

Jesus proved He was God by calming the wind and walking on the sea. Jesus made it clear his coming ended the old covenant and the new covenant is through him by his shed blood on the cross. Going forward, Jesus is the new Abraham, the new Moses, who will lead his followers to salvation and set up his kingdom on earth for 1,000 years.  The more truth you are exposed to the greater your accountability before God at the judgement. The saved Christian who has received the Holy Spirit and who knows God will be judged severely if he rejects God afterwards because he knows better. It would have been better for him not to have been born.

Sermon on the Mount, continued:
Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies. Jesus is the kingdom of heaven come to earth. God does not allow us to be tempted more than we can bear. God made you so He will surely feed you since you are important to Him. Apply the golden rule and you will resemble God.  When Jesus healed thousands of people it proved He had authority over sin and was therefore divine since in the Old Testament only God had authority over sin. Keep in mind if Satan was in charge he would kill every human being on earth in short order. Thankfully God is in charge of His creation and prevents Satan from harming us directly.

All sickness is ultimately a result of Adam’s original sin. As the person who would shortly bear the full penalty for that sin on the cross Jesus was in a position to forgive man’s sin and thereby remove the consequences of Adam’s sin. Although the disciples were slow to realize who Jesus was the demons were not. They knew Jesus immediately as the Son of God who would judge them in the end times.  Jesus’ authority over the wind and the sea identified Him as the creator and ruler of nature. The primary reason Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead was to show visible proof He was God. The Bible mentions this but doesn’t do it justice. Many places Jesus went He healed every single person brought to Him and they numbered in the thousands.

Jesus even healed Lepers! I’ll bet Jesus healed over 10,000 people during His ministry yet He was still rejected by His people. Divine power went out of Jesus every time someone was healed and often Jesus was exhausted because the human body is weak.  Jesus was tested for forty days just like Moses and Elijah were to see if He was worthy to serve God. God puts all of us to the test. It’s why we’re here on earth. Every action in the life of Jesus sets an example for us in how to lead a sinless life. Our task is to emulate Jesus the best we can.  As I read Matthew I became more aware of the eternal struggle between God and Satan for the soul of man. All the evil events in history were supported by the devil as he attempts to destroy God’s creation. Not to worry; God is always one step ahead of Satan.

Sermon on the Mount:
This sermon was the first major teaching of Jesus. It occurred on a gently sloping hillside on the banks of the Sea of Galilee attended by approximately 5,000 people. This sermon is also called the Beatitudes. It laid out rules to live by in order to enter God’s kingdom.

Blessed are those who do the following:

1. Be humble before God and depend on Him
2. Show regret over your sins
3. Hunger for righteousness in your personal life
4. Seek justice for the oppressed
5. Forgive those who trespass against you
6. As much as possible be at peace with everyone
7. Bear up under persecution which is sure to come
8. Let your integrity and good deeds shine before men

Jesus expanded on the commandment “Thou shalt not kill” to include being angry with your brother or holding a grudge. Jesus urged people to settle their differences quickly and out of court. Never swear against God because you are aligning with Satan when you do. Jesus expanded on the commandments “Thou shalt not commit adultery” and “Thou shalt not covet” when He said willful lust is a sin and unfaithfulness is the only reason for divorce.  Don’t make an oath but if you do don’t break it. Always speak the truth.  Let your no be no and your yes be yes. Be slow to anger and quick to forgive. Go above and beyond to make things right with anyone you have offended. Love God and other people because God made them too.

Whenever you are persecuted for God’s sake you are perfect before the Lord. You will receive a prophet’s honor in heaven just like the prophets of old. Pray to God and give to the needy as your heart moves you but do it in private and not to impress others. Righteous acts must be done for God’s glory or no heavenly reward is given.  Our eyes should be on building up spiritual treasure in heaven instead of earthly treasure. Don’t worry about anything and don’t judge others. God will handle it. Seek God and you will find Him. You will be known by your fruit and you can judge others the same way. Follow the teachings of Jesus and be wise; otherwise you are foolish.

I used to wonder why Matthew was the first gospel in the Bible when the gospel of Mark was written first. The answer is obvious to me now. Salvation was for the Jew first, then the Gentile. God never intended to leave us out.  God’s original plan was for His chosen people to be His priests and for them to take salvation to the Gentiles. It was only after the Jews rejected the Messiah that God turned to the Gentiles to build His church.  Getting back to my point, the gospel of Matthew is the “Jewish gospel” and therefore the first of the gospels by right. The Apostle Matthew was of course a Jew and he wrote his gospel to and for the Jews in their native Hebrew language.

Matthew establishes the genealogy of Jesus and bridges the Old and New Testaments with all the references to the Old Testament Scriptures about Jesus being fulfilled in the New Testament.  The Jewish people are jealous of their God. The Jews thought God was for them only and salvation was also for them alone. The Jews thought the Gentiles were inferior and unclean and rather to be shunned. It was a hard pill to swallow when God made it clear that salvation was for all men and we were all children of God.  God also made women the equal of men which was not the norm. Through the genealogy of Jesus God makes all this clear because it contains four women, one of which was a harlot and another was a Gentile. Jesus came to save everyone.

After the baptism of Jesus, and before He began His ministry, Jesus went to the Judean desert where He fasted for forty days while being tested by the devil (as we all are). Satan tried to get Jesus to turn rocks into bread, then jump off the temple which was 15 stories high and the highest building in antiquity, and finally Jesus was offered all the kingdoms of the earth which Satan had acquired due to Adam’s fall in the garden.  The point is, Jesus stopped Satan by quoting Scripture. Jesus was a man and didn’t use any of His powers while on earth. Jesus used God’s Word to defeat Satan and we also have that spiritual weapon today that we can use in the same manner to defeat Satan if we speak it in faith.

Jesus was setting the example for us to follow. Satan quoted Scripture to Jesus so obviously Satan had read the Old Testament and, by extension, the New Testament when it was written.  When we face off against Satan we don’t have a chance unless we know the Bible as well as he does. That’s why it’s important to get into God’s Word every day and put on the shield of faith. If Jesus had given in to Satan He would have sinned and failed the test and therefore Jesus would have been an unworthy sacrifice to redeem man from their sins.  Of course there was no chance of that since Jesus was God. The story about the trials of Jesus was meant to be an example for us to follow when tempted by the devil. We are to use God’s Word to defend ourselves and pray for God’s help. Satan has no power over the children of God other than what we give him.

PROLOGUE:
Matthew briefly covers the birth of Jesus up to the time Jesus started his preaching ministry in Galilee. It was the Jewish custom that men could not teach from the Law in the synagogues or become a Rabbi until the age of thirty. Therefore, when Jesus was thirty he went to John the Baptist to be baptized.  After Jesus was baptized heaven opened up and the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove to anoint Him for His ministry on earth. For the first time God spoke directly to man from heaven when He declared, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”  You need to understand all the Jewish people were waiting expectantly for the Messiah to appear and they knew it was imminent. Based on Old Testament Scripture everyone knew the coming of the Messiah was the next big thing on God’s prophetic calendar. It’s similar to the situation we have today where Christians are waiting expectantly for the rapture which also is the next big thing on God’s prophetic calendar in our time.

The last time God had spoken to Israel was through the prophet Malachi 400 years before the birth of Jesus. Jesus started preaching at age thirty and three and a half years later He was crucified. So God was silent for 400 years before He acted to restore the fellowship between man and God which was culminated by the crucifixion of Jesus roughly 432-33 years from the time God last spoke to man through Malachi.  When Israel was in bondage in Egypt God had not spoken to His chosen people for over 400 years. Then God sent Moses to restore fellowship between the Israelites and God by leading them out of bondage. Israel was in captivity roughly 432-33 years. It could be a coincidence but personally I see a corollary between the two similar timelines because I know God is precise. There is a lot we fail to see.  Anyway, the Jews knew the coming of the Messiah was imminent and they were aware God promised in the Old Testament that the Messiah would be descended from the lineage of King David. All Jewish people kept detailed records of their ancestry and especially those who were of the line of David because all of them were hoping the Messiah would be born through their house.

When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her she would carry the Messiah not only was Mary not surprised, she was pleased. It was like winning the lottery. Joseph wasn’t surprised either when he learned of the coming birth of Messiah through the Holy Spirit. Mary and Joseph were aware of the honor being bestowed upon them as parents of Jesus and having an important part in the promised Messiah sent to save not only Israel but all the world.  What many people don’t realize is that Joseph was from the Davidic bloodline and should have been the rightful king of Israel instead of Herod. As the adopted first son of Joseph Jesus was the legal heir to the throne of the rightful king of Israel.  Not only was Jesus the legal heir to the throne of Israel, He was the heir to the throne of Israel by blood through His mother Mary. Most people don’t realize that Mary was also a direct descendant of King David. God made sure Jesus was king of Israel both legally and by bloodline. God is precise in all He does if we can but see it.