Matthew 2

Magi from the East came to Jerusalem to see The Who was born to be king of the Jews. Herod called together the chief priests and teachers of the law who knew the prophesy that the messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Herod sent the Magi to find the baby and not the chief priests. 

The magi may have been from Parthia near the site of Babylon. Parthia was an enemy of Rome and as powerful. 

The magi presented gold and incense and Myrrh. Gold for a king, incense for a God, and Myrrh, which was used for embalming, to foreshadow the death. 

God directs Joseph to take his family to Egypt to avoid the killing of boys due to Herod’s jealousy. 

God then directs Joseph to come back from Egypt when Herod dies but Herod’s son is ruling in Jerusalem so Joseph goes to Nazareth. 

Herod, like most Jews of that time thought that the messiah would be a great military ruler and fight for political freedom. Jesus came instead to wage a spiritual battle and fight for souls. 

Matthew 1

Matthew lists the genealogy of Jesus which includes Ruth and includes the statement that Solomon’s mother had been the wife of Uriah the Hittite. 

The genealogy is a quick way to recite all the history contained in the Old Testament from Abraham. The readers at that time would know all the names and their stories. 

The four women mentioned in this genealogy all have ties to gentiles. Three were gentiles that married into Israel and Bathsheba was an Israelite that married a Hittite before she married David. 

Matthew 1:19 NIV

[19] Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

Joseph could have divorced her publicly but did not want to make it public. 

By marrying her Joseph adopted the child and gave him a birthright and heritage but also adopted the shame of Mary being pregnant before marriage. 

I will be posting some thoughts as I read through the New Testament.  I welcome input and polite discussion.

Here is some information I found in the Gospels to get started.

Matthew concentrates on how Jesus came to fulfill Jewish prophecy.   No other gospel so forcefully shows the hypocritical outlook of the Pharisees. Jesus is portrayed as a teacher. 

Mark emphasizes action.  He stresses how Jesus taught that he must suffer and be rejected. 

Luke stressed the blessing of salvation.  Luke brings out the grace of god revealed in Jesus. 

John reveals Jesus as the one sent by god. John brings out the eternal significance of the god become man. 

The good news demanded a response. Jesus calls us to repent and become his disciples. 

The gospel forces us to make a decision as to who Jesus is. Is he a prophet, is he a crazy man, is he the son of god?

As a believer, I cannot concert anyone. I can only provide you with the information and then it is up to you to make the decision as to who Jesus is. I hope you make the same choice I did that Jesus is the Son of God and my Lord and Savior.

I am now a certified facilitator for Personify Leadership.

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I just applied for a license to host TEDxMillersvilleUniversity.  Hoping that I get approved.  Can’t wait to bring TED Talks to Millersville University.  If you don’t know, there is already a TEDxLancaster: http://www.tedxlancaster.com/.  They are hosting an event Saturday, September 10 at the Ware Center.

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