Day 75 ~ pass the buck to Herod

• Luke 16:16 - the law of the prophets lasted until John. Since then, the King of of God has been preached.
• 16:19-31 - Did you ever notice how when you see really poor people interviewed on TV that they have a deep devotion to God. They have so little, yet they are so appreciative. I was watching a TV show about diamond mines yesterday and there was a man in Sierra Leone working for like a dollar a day in the muddy pits and living in a mud hut with a grass roof. And he continually talked about God's will in his life.
• 17:5 - Apostles ask Christ for what they need - to increase their faith.
• 17:20 - what are our duties to do without thanks - spiritually and in daily life? This fits well with the sermon this morning about how we grumble about the little things.
• 19:11 - the apostles thought that the Kingdom of God would come immediately - I wonder if they were constantly thinking - "okay, this is it" like Fred Sanford "Oh, this is the big one 'lizabeth!"
• 19:37 - Jesus and the Mt. of Olives. - Here is a panoramic photo of Jerusalem taken from the mount of Olives. On the wall below and to the right of the golden dome of the rock and the foreground spruce tree is the eastern gate, sealed over. Directly in front of the gate is a graveyard. Some think that this will keep Christ from returning through the eastern gate as announced in Revelation because a good Rabbi would never cross over dead bodies (or something like that). I don't think it will stop Him! Also, note that close proximity - just a valley away from the main walled city. Jesus will return to this hill to pray in the garden of Gethsamane. http://www.hatzphoto.com/Jerusalem/index.html I have some really good photos of this as well from 1998.
• 21:9 - "But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.” This passage adds a bit to the end times info - don't be terrified, and it will not come immediately. Did you know the concept of the rapture, that Jesus would take away His believers before the tribulation, was first gained popularity in the early 1800s and most famously by John Nelson Darby in 1837. If the tribulation is to occur in my life time or the lifetime of my child, I hope Christ snatches us away first, or that we will be dead.
• 21:36 - watch and pray - don't be caught unaware!
• 22:3 - how was Judas, who was with Jesus and and heard and learned so much from him, able to betray Him? Satan entered him.
• 22:30 - the apostles would judge over the tribes of Israel in Christ's kingdom
• 22:35 - the tides have changed - no longer can the apostles count on the welfare of others - be prepared and armed.
• 22:43 - an angel came and strengthened Christ while He prayed in Gethsamane. Did we hear that yet? When does he step on the snakes head like was so well portrayed in the jolting image from "The Passion of the Christ" movie. Must come in John. Or was that Hollywood?
• 23:6-12 - a little more info on Pilate (Roman governor of Judea) and Herod (tetrarch of Galilee and Perea). I don't know if they were equal in authority, but they ruled different territories. I don't know if Herod was a ruler over Pilate or not. Herod was not the same Herod from Jesus' birth who killed all the babies, but his son. Herod was the one who killed John the Baptist. I think you would liken Herod to the roman governor of Israel, and Pilate was the mayor of a large territory
• 23:48 - where are the apostles? the women are near the cross.
• 24:21 - "But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel" the apostles after Jesus is discovered missing from the tomb. What did they expect Jesus to do? They still fundamentally didn't get it. They said this to Christ who met them on the road and walked with them but they didn't know it was Him.
• 24:27 - "And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" - I wish they would have written that down!
• 24:49 - stay in Jerusalem until you are given power from on High - in Acts 2

I read one chapter into tomorrow's reading to end Luke

Day 74 ~ I could never be a Catholic

Beginning with chapter 10 of Luke, several parables are told that have not yet been shared in Matthew or Mark. I've seen a couple of charts with the parables laid out, and they don't include the gospel of John in the chart. Are their no parables in John? Guess we'll find out in a few days. Seems to me that when you read the gospels in a parallel Bible, John is always included. This chart - http://www.lifeofchrist.com/teachings/parables/ - lists the parables with John, and it lists three parables in John, none of which are recounted in Matthew, Mark or Luke. At least 20 parables are told in John that do not appear in any of the other three gospels. All of them but one (in 7:41-43) appear in chapter 10 or later of Luke. Matthew has 15 that are not included in any of the other gospels. Mark only contains two unique parables.

• Chapter 10:1-12 - 70 are sent out to heal and announce the coming of the Kingdom of God has come. I don't know if this included the 12 apostles - I suspect they stayed with Christ - the 70 weren't gone long, for in verse 17 they returned to profess their joyful accomplishments.
• Chapter 10:38-42 - Mary and Martha - I remember reading a book that discussed the characteristics of a Mary or Martha church. I know I lean more toward being a Martha, but need to heed the warning about being busy and not being fed spiritually.

Let's talk about Catholicism. Most of my knowlege is from a historical study, showing all the corruptness and political side of it, and I'm not a big fan of Catholicism.
In Luke 11:27-28 - Jesus' response to praise of His mother - "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!” But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” This makes me wonder why the Catholic church so highly exalts Mary, the mother of Jesus. I'm assuming that the Catholic religion bases their praying to Mary for intercession based on Mary's song from Luke 1. Why do they need an otherworldly intercessor to Jesus to God? When Jesus is the ultimate interecessor, why do we need to get his attention through his mother? Especially when Jesus downplays the praise of His mother in these two verses.

I found the phrase "Mary co-redemptrix" doing websearches (with http://www.goodsearch.com/ with Cicero Christian Church as the charity, of course!). That phrase really scares me. Just like the Pharisees added layers of details to the law of Moses, the Popes of the Catholic church have applied layers of attributes to Mary over the years, such as Pope Boneventure in the twelveth century "[Mary is called] the gate of heaven, because no one can enter that blessed kingdom without passing through her." Okay, how is that Biblical? or Pope Pius XII, in his Munificentissimus Deus (1950-NOV-1), defined that Mary, "after the completion of her earthly life was assumed body and soul into the glory of Heaven." That is, she was "taken up body and soul into heaven," at the time of her death. She is there "exalted as Queen of the Universe." This, to me, is dangerous. I guess it is safe to say that I will never be a Catholic, and I will have a very difficult time if my daughter were to consider dating a "good Catholic boy". Yes, I said it, Popes of the Catholic church can be likened to Pharisees. Apparently, many people like to be told what to do by the Pope, as over 1/6th of the population of the world profess to be Catholic.

• 12:8 - I think this is why we profess our belief in Christ in front of witnesses - “Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God."
• 13:1 - "Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices" - wonder what this was. It appeared some had been martyrs at the hand of Pilate. I always thought of Pilate as a decent guy in a bad situation when he had to give Christ over to the Jewish authorities. But maybe Pilate wasn't that nice a guy.
• 14:2 - what is dropsy? Wikipedia says it is "edema" which is extra fluid in an organ causing inflamation.
• 14:7-11 - to me this is a good example of being humble / the first shall be last.
• 15:25-30 - the prodigal son. Having being raised in the church and educated in a religious college, I too would likely respond as the obedient son who didn't welcome back his prodigal brother.

Day 73 ~ the chronological gospel

Luke tells us in the third verse that he is writing in consecutive order. He starts with John the Baptist, who is from the tribe of Levi.

• 1:15 - John is filled with the Holy Spirit in his mother's womb
• :74 - serving God without fear can be accomplished through Christ
  

Chapter 2 - Quirinius is the governor of Syria - I love these details that can be corroborated in historical evidence and thus proving the factuality of the Bible. Also, verse 3:1 gives some excellent info to check against Roman history.

This is the chapter that is read on Christmas morning in my family before any presents are opened. I can remember sitting in jammies with a tape recorder as dad read to us and recorded it for my grandparents living in Florida to listen to. There is a great photo somewhere of what I call the "refuge" christmas - Todd, Christy and I in underwear and t-shirts, sitting crosslegged in front of the christmas tree with the worst possible posture ever. We progressed on to a video tape machine in the corner. There was always some twist to the wrapping - three big piles covered with newspaper, presents wrapped but labeled only with numbers 1, 2 or 3, or the sleeping bag christmas when all the presents were hidden under the blue patch quilt patterned bags. I now know as a parent that my folks simply didn't have the time to get them all wrapped. I'm sure some years they didn't have the money or time to shop until just before the big day. Some years they attempted to hide them in advance from us, but attic access in the garage proved to be a poor choice. We also were good at shaking, or opening and rewrapping.

• 2:24 - Joseph and Mary offered a sacrifice at the temple according to the Law of Moses for their new Son.
• 2:36-37 - Anna, widowed after only 7 years of marriage, served out her life in the temple in a ministry of prayer - what a crown of glory to see the Messiah in her old age

Chapter 3 - I wonder how much before Christ's ministry began did John begin his ministry? We know he was well known at the time of Jesus' ministry.

• 3:6 - "all flesh shall see the salvation of God" - quoted from Isaiah 40:5. The blood of the cross covers all, back to Adam.
• 3:23 - begins the geneology - again through Joseph - all the way back to Adam. I thought one of these geneologies traced it from the side of Mary as well. Guess we have to wait for John to see. Jesus' ministry begins about his 30th year.

Chapter 4:6 - the fallen earth has been handed over to satan, per satan

• 4:14 - news about Jesus spread - was this even before he had done any miracles? Perhaps some time has passed. In 4:23, it alludes to some miracels already done by not told in Luke. And in Mark, several miracles are recounted before Jesus goes to Nazareth.
• 4:30 - "passing through their midst" - hwo do you go from being nearly thrown off a cliff to walking away - did Jesus change bodily form to escape? like a ghost?
• Jesus did a lot of teaching throughout the synagogues before he picked his disciples.
• 4:37 - word was spreading about Him
• 4:38 - Simon (Peter, see Matthew 8:14) - when was he actually called as a disciple? It seems he may have been the first, and that Jesus had a relationship with Peter's family.

Chapter 5:10 - Simon, James and John were partners in fishing.

• :16 - Jesus seems to re-energize through prayer
• :17 - were there times when the power of the Lord was not present for healing? What would those times have been? Did Jesus run out of juice, and have to recharge through prayer and fasting? Or was the power constant?
• :27 - Matthew (Levi) the tax collector joins the disciples. Looking back at Matthew's gospel, he doesn't recount any of the activities of the disciples together until the Sermon on the Mount, which occurs in part in Luke 6 starting with verse 20. Based on the chronological account per Luke, this makes sense.

Chapter 6:12 - disciples vs. apostles. Apparently Christ had many followers he called disciples, probably including Mary Magdalene and Mary mother of Jesus. But the inner circle of twelve he calls his apostles. Only the men who studied with Christ are called apostles. There are no modern day apostles, but there are modern day disciples.

6:38 - "For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you"

Chapter 7 - do you notice that Capernaum (on the northern edge of the sea of Galilee) is a home base for Jesus? One of the sites we visited when we went to Israel in 1998 was Capernaum, and we stood on the ruins of a first century synagogue that was built on the remains of the synagogue that was mentioned in verse 5. Visit here for a picture of what I'm talking about - http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/sites/TScpsyn1.html

• :18 - I would have thought that God would have made it known to John that Jesus was the One, but apparently not. Wasn't it clear from chapter 3 when John baptized Jesus?
• The woman who cries and washes Jesus' feet with her tears is often said to be Mary Magdelene. But that is not clear here.

Day 72 ~ okay, once again...on the third day, I'm going to raise from the dead...

• Mark 9:10 - the disciples at the transfiguration questioned what rising from the dead meant. Jesus had "spoke this word openly" back in 8:31-32. Why did they not understand? again in 9:30-31: " He taught His disciples and said to them, 'The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him. And after He is killed, He will rise the third day.' But they did not understand this saying, and were afraid to ask Him." Why were they afraid? Why did they not understand? Did they think he was talking in parables again? He tells them again in 10:33&34.
• 9:43 - eternal fire in hell. Quote from Isaiah 66:24 about the fire that is not quenched - you would have had to have been paying close attention to catch that and equate it to the reality of an eternal punishment in hell - back when we were looking for the promise of heaven in the Old Testament. There is no lack of talk of eternal life in the New Testament.
• 10:25 - I remember from somewhere that the "eye of the needle" was a gate in a city and the talk of getting the camel through was to envision a camel loaded with stuff and trying to fit him through a stone gate in a wall too small for him to fit. He would have to be unloaded and practically go through on his knees to fit. Unburdened, like one who sold all their possessions and became humbled.
• 10:35 - the Sons of Thunder seem to treat Jesus like a genie in a bottle - grant us our wish. Seems a bit unbelievable. How long had these guys been with Jesus? Would you ask Jesus that question in their situation?
• 11:24 - "whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them" is quickly followed by "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” My guess is that if you are in a state of trespass with God, He is unlikely to answer your prayers.
• 12 - vineyard parable - I'm going to say that God is the vineyard owner, the vineyard is heaven, Jesus is the son that is killed by the vinedressers, the vinedressers are Jews, and the gentiles are the ones who will receive the vineyard.
• 12:18 - sadducees. I remember from "Jet Cadets" back in the 5th or 6th grade that sadducees are "sad, you see" for they don't believe that Jesus would raise from the dead. And that pharisees were "fair, you see" or not as bad as the saducees.
• 14:51-52 - what is the significance of the naked man?
• Mark doesn't say anything about graves opening up when the temple curtain rips, nor does he say anything about the earthquake or the curtain rip for that matter.
• 16:17-18 - who displays these signs? I think it is the disciples he is addressing who truly believe He has been raised from the dead. Jesus has just rebuked them for their unbelief at His appearances after his death. Perhaps those who truly didn't believe wouldn't be able to display the signs. I don't think these signs necessarily were displayed by anyone who believed, or else the whole country side would be filled with people picking up snakes and speaking new languages (which is a skill they would need if they are to go out to every nation).
• 16:19 - which hand of God will Jesus sit at? the right hand of course

Day 71 ~ Crowd pressing in from all sides

Thinking through Matthew, I wondered if Jesus and the disciples ever offered a sacrifice. Doesn't seem that there would be a need since Jesus could forgive. They went to the temple, the celebrated the passover feast. Also, it would seem that the high priest would be very busy with sacrifices and such around the temple, but apparently he had time for all the political play going on.

• 1:12 - the Spirit drove Jesus to the wilderness for the temptation
• :15 - Jesus told them to believe in the "gospel" - what was the gospel to them?
• :20 - what happened to Zebedee. His wife, the mother of James and John, is mentioned a couple of times in Matthew. Zebedee is mentioned here as being left with the hired hands and James and John go with Jesus.
• :24 - the demons know who Jesus is, also vs. 34

Mark makes the multitudes and the pressing of the crowds more apparent, more pressing, more exhausting, more constant. Jesus tells many of those he heals, and the demons that he cast out, to be silent about who He is and what He has done. Is this to help with crowd control? or reverse psychology to spread the word?

• :43 - this is another instance, as was verse 24, where Jesus told those healed not to tell of who He was

Chapter 3 - disciples are named and charged. Mark calls Peter "Simon" and Matthew "Levi" and the Sons of Thunger James and John "Boanerges".

• 3:21 - He is out of His mind - are they talking about Jesus (I think so) Why do they say this?
• 5:13 - what would Jews do with 2000 pigs? They can't eat them.
• 5:19 - the demon possessed man was told to tell his friends. This is the opposite - usually Christ tells them to keep silent
• 5:30 - Jesus felt the power go out of him when the woman touched his robe. Did the healing take a physical toll on Christ?
• 6:13 - disciples anointed with oil those who were sick. Did Jesus ever do this? He sometimes used his spit.
• 6:52 - part of the reason that the disciples didn't understand is that they had hard hearts.
• 7:24 - Gentile girl healed (not a Jew). The mother argued successfully with Jesus with the dog / crumb analogy.

Day 70 ~ Jesus sings a hymn

Matthew Chapter 22 - many are called but few are chosen (or few make the cut). Parable of the wedding guests - you better come with your game clothes on if you're given a chance to hit the field. The greatest commandment is the shamah - Deut 6:5-6

Chapter 23 - Scribes seem to be in an elevated position since the old testament. Thye have created additional rules over those given to Moses and complicated things - all for show. They were mentioned, and I really never knew what they were, so I guess I should finally look it up. Interestingly enough, the reference says "scribe" can be confusing. sometimes it means "lawyer" meaning a teacher of the law. During the reign of David and Solomon, it was like an administrator similar to secretary of state. In other times, they were more like recorders, chroniclers or historians, recording history as it happens (this is what I think of). But in Jesus' day, scribes had become a learned class in Israel who studied the scriptures and served as copyists, editors and teachers. Once qualified through years of training, they could act as judges, rabbis and joined the chief priests and aristocratic families who made up the Jewish council.

Chapter 24 - signs of Christ's return. This chapter deals with two separated but connected things - the soon-to-come fall of Jerusalem (again) and the end times when Christ returns after his resurrection and return to heaven (hasn't occurred yet). It's hard to tell them apart. If you were to read this outside of context of other scripture, say Revelation, then you could think that the tribulation at the end of the times would occur with believers going through the tribulation. The desecration of the altar is talked about - it will occur when the Romans destroy the temple in about 35 years after Jesus' death, and will occur again after the temple is rebuilt in the future. This is a piece of the pre-post-mid tribulation puzzle. I guess the main point is to be ready at all times, don't be caught off guard, know what you believe.

Chapter 25 - Chief priest vs. high priest. I think I was confusing chief priest with high priest before and didn't realize it until I read about the high priest (only one) being Caiaphas. The priests can't "get Jesus" on their own, they have to resort to trickery and their goal is death of Jesus.

• Jesus is anointed with oil in preparing his body for his death.
• Judas sells him out.
• Jesus celebrates his final passover. It appears that passover has become part of the routine once again instead of forgotten in the past.
• :27 - Jesus is the blood of the NEW covenant
• :30 - Jesus and the disciples sing a hymn. I guess I always thought about singing to Jesus, but it's kind of cool imagining Him singing.
• :32 - Jesus says he will reappear in Galilee (after his death)
• :33 - Peter - bullheaded and proud, is corrected by Jesus when he says he won't deny Christ.
• :41 - the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak - pray is a key to avoiding temptation
• :47 - hail, hail, the gang's all here - in the garden of Gethsamane - multitude led by Judas, chief priest, elders - but it doesn't say soldiers. Wonder if the other gospels provide that fact.
• :60 - two false witnesses testify - remember OT law requires two witnesses to allow for discussion of death

Chapter 27 -

• :1 - Chief priest and religious leaders know they can kill him according to Jewish law, but the need more plotting to make it "legal" in roman law.
• :18 - Pilate knew the religious leaders motives - envy
• :52 - I don't think I caught this before - when Jesus dies, graves were opened and fallen saints rose up and appeared to many in town. interesting. folks had to know something was up!
• :58 - imagine Joseph of Arimathea going to Pilate and asking for Jesus' body. I think of it being dark and being dimly lit by candles, a very intimate exchange between the two men, perhaps Pilate even discussing how he felt. Just my imagination.

Chapter 28 - Jesus reminds them that he will see them in Galilee. The plot thickens with the religious leaders - lies get bigger and more costly to cover their tracks. The chapter ends with Jesus reappearing before his disciples and the great commission.

Day 69 ~ multitudes and miracles

Matthew - Jesus answers his proponents questions with questions. Many times it is mentioned that Jesus was surrounded by multitudes, and healing multitudes. Just try to imagine this scene over and over and how you might handle it. Jesus did take some time alone to recharge when he could. It's hard to give my thoughts in this fast moving full to over flowing content without just giving you an outline of the book, but here we go.
Chapter 12 -

• 12:7 - as we've seen many times in the Old Testament, God desires mercy, not sacrifice
• :16 - this is at least the third time Jesus has told someone not to tell what He has done for them
• :25 - a house divided cannot stand
• :31-32 - blasphemy of the Spirit is not forgiveable
• :34b - the mouth speaks what is in the heart.
• :38 - sometimes it is quite clear that these people are Jews by their hard-headedness - how many signs do they need?
• :40 - the answer to the sign that they need - Jesus, like Jonah who was 3 days in the belly of the whale, will be 3 days in the heart of the earth (he gives this as an answer a bit later in Matthew as well)
• :50 - whomever does the will of the Father in heaven are brothers and sisters with Christ

Chapter 13 - many parables - sower and the seeds, tares and the wheat, the mustard seed. Nazrareth rejects him as prophesied.

• :55 - the actual brothers of Christ are named - James, Joseph, Simon (not Simon Peter), Judas (not Iscariot) and unnamed sisters

Chapter 14 - John the Baptist loses his head, literally. Jesus feeds multitude with 5 loaves and 2 fishes and walks on water with Peter.

Chapter 15 - Pharisees go out to meet Jesus from Jerusalem - they were becoming focused against Jesus. But they make a pretty weak argument about washing hands in verse 2.

• :24 - Jesus says He was sent only to the Jews (the lost sheep of the house of Israel). Remember in the beginning of Matthew when the disciples are sent out specifically to the Jews first?
• Disciples are sometimes thick-skulled - 15:12 they ask Jesus if he knows that he made the Pharisees mad. 15:33 - where will we get food? Did they forget about the feeding of the multitudes with only 5 loaves and 2 fish?

Chapter 16 - Pharisees are now joined by the Saducees - well at least they can get along when they have a common goal - getting rid of Jesus.

• :15 - who do you say that I am?
• :18 - Peter is the rock on which the church will be built. The Catholics consider him the first priest, I think based on this.
• :20 - again, tell no one that I am the Christ
• :23 - a short 5 verses after the spirit-supplied answer of "you are the Christ, the son of the Living God" is given by Peter, Peter is rebuked by Christ for his doubt with "get behind me Satan"
• :24-27 - deny, take up your cross, save your life by losing it

Chapter 17 - transfiguration

• :11-12 - Jesus states that Elijah, who appears with Moses at the transfiguration with the "inner circle" of disciples and Christ, had come again through John the Baptist.
• :17 - Jesus is frustrated with the disciples lack of faith to cast out demons. There is a parenthetical verse 21 (why?) that says this kind of miracle required prayer and fasting.

Chapter 18 - become like little children - humble / don't be a stumbling block / keys to conflict resolution / forgiveness examples with the master and servant

Chapter 19 - Divorce discussed

:12 - what is a Eunuch from his mother's womb? A hermaphrodite?

:13 - let the children come to me - did the disciples not listen in chapter 18?

:23 - hard for rich man to get to heaven

:26 - with God, all things are possible

Chapter 20 - the first will be last the last will be first - the parable of the Vineyard owner is a tough nut to crack - I don't really get it.

• :18 - Jesus tells the disciples exactly what is going to happen - my guess is that they don't get it or don't believe it, or they think he's talking in a parable they don't understand. He will be delivered to the chief priests, die and raise again.
• :22 the sons of Zebedee's mom is vying for position in heaven - pretty tasteless.

Chapter 21 - Jesus is procurred a donkey to ride. He overturns the money changers tables in the temple. He "calls a spade a spade" and leaves no question about how he views the Pharisees and the chief priests, and they receive his message (vs. 45)