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thepastisalreadywritten · 2 months

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SAINT OF THE DAY (February 23)

On February 23, the Catholic Church remembers the life and martyrdom of St. Polycarp, a disciple of the apostle and evangelist St. John.

Polycarp is celebrated on the same date by Eastern Orthodox Christians, who also honor him as a Saint.

Polycarp is known to later generations primarily through the account of his martyrdom, rather than by a formal biography.

However, it can be determined from that account that he was born around the year 69 AD.

From the testimony he gave to his persecutors – stating he had served Christ for 86 years – it is clear that he was either raised as a Christian, or became one in his youth.

Growing up among the Greek-speaking Christians of the Roman Empire, Polycarp received the teachings and recollections of individuals who had seen and known Jesus during his earthly life.

This important connection – between Jesus' first disciples and apostles and their respective students – served to protect the Catholic Church against the influence of heresy during its earliest days, particularly against early attempts to deny Jesus' bodily incarnation and full humanity.

Polycarp's most significant teacher, with whom he studied personally, was St. John – whose contributions to the Bible included not only the clearest indication of Jesus' eternal divinity but also the strongest assertions of the human nature he assumed on behalf of mankind.

By contrast, certain tendencies had already emerged among the first Christians – to deny the reality of Jesus' literal suffering, death and resurrection, regarding them as mere "symbols" of highly abstract ideas.

With John's help, Polycarp may have been the one who compiled, edited, and published the New Testament

Another Catholic teacher of the second century, St. Irenaeus, wrote that "Polycarp was not only instructed by apostles and conversed with many who had seen Christ; but he was also, by apostles, appointed bishop of the Church in Smyrna."

In a surviving letter that he wrote to the Philippians, he reminded that Church – which had also received the teaching of St. Paul – not to surrender their faith to the "gnostic" teachers claiming to teach a more intellectually refined gospel.

"For every one who shall not confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, is antichrist," he wrote – citing St. John himself – "and whosoever shall not confess the testimony of the Cross is of the devil; and whosoever shall pervert the oracles of the Lord to his own lusts and say that there is neither resurrection nor judgment, that man is the firstborn of Satan."

"Let us therefore, without ceasing, hold fast by our hope and by the pledge of our righteousness," Polycarp taught – as he went on to explain that both hope and righteousness depended upon "Jesus Christ, who took up our sins in His own body upon the cross."

With eloquence and clarity, he reminded the Philippian Church that Christ, "for our sakes, endured all things – so that we might live in him."

However, Polycarp's most eloquent testimony to his faith in Jesus came not through his words but through his martyrdom, described in another early Christian work.

The Church of Smyrna, in present-day Turkey, compiled their recollections of their bishop's death at the hands of public authorities in a letter to another local church.

"We have written to you, brethren, as to what relates to the martyrs, and especially to the blessed Polycarp" – who, in the words of the Catholics of Smyrna, "put an end to the persecution – having, as it were, set a seal upon it by his martyrdom."

Around the year 155, Polycarp became aware that government authorities were on the lookout for him, seeking to stamp out the Catholic Church's claim of obeying a higher authority than the Emperor.

He retreated to a country house and occupied himself with constant prayer, before receiving a vision of his death that prompted him to inform his friends: "I must be burned alive."

He changed locations but was betrayed by a young man who knew his whereabouts and confessed under torture.

He was captured on a Saturday evening by two public officials, who urged him to submit to the state demands.

"What harm is there," one asked, "in saying, 'Caesar is Lord,' and in sacrificing to him, with the other ceremonies observed on such occasions, so as to make sure of safety?"

"I shall not do as you advise me," he answered.

Outraged by his response, the officials had him violently thrown from their chariot and taken to an arena for execution.

Entering the stadium, the bishop – along with some of his companions, who survived to tell of it – heard a heavenly voice, saying:

"Be strong, and show yourself a man, O Polycarp!"

Before the crowd, the Roman proconsul demanded again that he worship the emperor.

"Hear me declare with boldness, I am a Christian," the bishop said. "And if you wish to learn what the doctrines of Christianity are, appoint me a day, and you shall hear them."

"You threaten me with fire," he continued "which burns for an hour, and after a little is extinguished. But you are ignorant of the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly."

"But," he challenged the proconsul, "what are you waiting for? Bring forth what you will."

Although the crowds clamored for Polycarp to be devoured by beasts, it was decided he should be burned alive, just as he had prophesied.

He prayed aloud to God:

"May I be accepted this day before you as an acceptable sacrifice — just as you, the ever-truthful God, have foreordained, revealed beforehand to me, and now have fulfilled."

What happened next struck Polycarp's companions with amazement. They recorded the sight in the letter that they circulated after Polycarp's death.

"As the flame blazed forth in great fury," they wrote, "we to whom it was given to witness it, beheld a great miracle."

The fire did not seem to touch the bishop's body. Rather, as they described:

"Shaping itself into the form of an arch, it encompassed – as by a circle – the body of the martyr. And he appeared within not like flesh which is burnt, but as bread that is baked, or as gold and silver glowing in a furnace."

"Moreover, we perceived such a sweet odour coming from the flames – as if frankincense or some such precious spices had been burning there."

The executioners perceived that Polycarp's death was not going as planned. Losing patience, they ordered him to be stabbed to death.

From the resulting wound, "there came forth a dove and a great quantity of blood so that the fire was extinguished."

The crowd, as the Christian witnesses recalled, were understandably amazed.

"All the people marveled," they wrote, "that there should be such a difference between the unbelievers and the elect."

Polycarp, they proclaimed, had been among that elect – "having in our own times been an apostolic and prophetic teacher, and bishop of the Catholic Church which is in Smyrna."

St. Polycarp has been venerated as a saint since his death in 155.

#Saint of the Day #St. Polycarp #St. Polycarp of Smyrna

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albertfinch · 1 year

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FREEDOM OF THE CROSS

"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds His life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." - Matthew 10:37-39

Many believe for Jesus' salvation but never walk in the total freedom of the cross.

In the New Testament, "kairos" means ' the appointed time in the purpose of God", the time when God acts; for example in Mark 1:15: "And saying, ' The time (kairos) is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel.'"

DIVINE IMPARTATION FOR STRENGTH

In Luke 22:43 after Jesus had resolved within His own heart for the Father's will to be done in His life, we see that "An angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him."

It is possible for us to be granted a divine impartation of strength to embrace the cross today.

If we are to achieve anything in our lives that bears eternal fruit, we must first deny ourselves and embrace the cross (God's PURPOSE for our lives) just as Christ Jesus modeled for us.

The anointing to embrace the cross (God's CALLING on our life) involves prayer, sanctification, and intimacy with God. There is no alternative way to embrace the cross.

In Matthew 27:32 Simon the Cyrenian was "compelled to bear His cross."

Is Jesus calling us to do the same today?

COMPELLED TO BEAR OUR CROSS

Matthew 27:32 - "Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: Him they compelled to bear His cross."

"Compelled (Greek: Aggareuo, Strongs 29) literally translated -- to be pressed into public service or compelled to "go".

The word for "bear" (Greek; Airo, Strong's 142), literal translation -- to take up or to take away.

The call is still true for us today just as it was for Simon the Cyrenian. To "take up our cross" we must come to the place of death. We must die to ourselves and to our worldly dreams and fully embrace the plans and blueprints that God has written for us in heaven.

When Simon and Jesus took the cross to Calvary, "they were come (together) unto a place called Golgotha" (Matthew 27:33).

Prophetically, Simon the Cyrenian represents each of us:

We must all come to the place of the cross and die to our agendas and carnal thoughts for our lives and ministries.

We must allow the Father's purpose for our life (our Christ calling) to be manifested in our lives.

We must all come to our own personal Golgothas.\

Just as Jesus was with the Cyrenian, He will be with each of us at the time and place of our personal death to self.

"Jesus then said to his disciples, 'If anyone wishes to be a follower of mine, he must leave self behind; he must take up his cross and come with me. Whoever cares for his own safety is lost; but if a man will let himself be lost for my sake, he will find his true self.'" - Mattthew 16:24-25 NEB

COMING UNDER ATTACK

The enemy of our soul does not want us to embrace the Cross of Christ. The warfare can be tremendous for us as we embrace the cross (death to self).

When we approach the place of surrender and death to self we will also come under attack from the evil one. Fortunately, Jesus has already fought this battle for each of us.

The enemy will bellow and scream at us every time we fall short. When we fail to fully embrace the cross, he will illuminate our shortcomings.

Picking up our cross is a process. If we fall down -- get up just as Jesus did. Emulate Christ -- dying to yourself and worldly dreams is a process. Even the Son of God walked through this process.

It takes time and intimacy with the Lord -- laying down our life is a process.

"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." - Luke 14:27

Taking up your cross is not a popular message. When Jesus shared this message, many left Him, and later reviled and cursed Him. The message of the cross was one reason why Jesus was beaten, afflicted, smote, reviled spit on, crucified, and killed.

When we die to manmade methods, ideas, and formulas, and begin to truly minister in the pattern of heaven, only then can we begin to bear fruit that remains for God's Kingdom.

ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

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ghosts-and-blue-sweaters · 10 months

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List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last ten people who reblogged something from you! Get to know your mutuals & followers!! <3

Oooh, thank you! :D

1. Ghostbur <3 (literally, when I watch clips/art/read fics/talk + think about Ghostbur, there is instant happiness. A friend sent me a bunch of Ghostbur art a few weeks ago and it made me so happy and smiley and I still think about it <33)

2. Reading le Bible—specifically, the New Testament, even more specifically, stuff about the Disciples. Oh my gosh they can be so darn hilarious it’s amazing (I’ve been reading through the book of John recently, and it’s been so neat!! I’ve been real out of the habit of reading my Bible, so it’s been nice to get back into it :)

3. When fictional characters play ukulele!! It’s always so exciting :D A few weeks ago I had the Realization that c!Tubbo canonically plays the ukulele and LACSHAUSVAJSBAKSG YIPPEE!!!

4. Getting comments on my fics :) I got one last night and it made me soooooo so happy yes

5. Going to thrift shops! I went to one pretty recently and found THE COMFIEST HEKKIN JEANS EVER OH MY GOSH I HAD NO IDEA JEANS COULD BE THIS COMFY WOW and also a really pretty blue/white skirt :) And they were like TWELVE DOLLARS COMBINED DEAR GOODNESS!!!

#WHAT A DEAL #chain mail #ask

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alwaysrememberjesus · 1 year

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Holy Week - Monday

Luke 9:51

They say the eyes are the window to the soul. This implies that you can learn some interesting things about a person by looking into their eyes. For example, if someone doesn’t make eye contact, they may not be interested in you or the topic of conversation. It could also mean that they may be hiding something. Medical personnel can often tell if a person is sick just by looking at their eyes. And a wink of the eye may be flirtation…or a dust particle.

The prophet Isaiah wrote the following Messianic passage about 700 years or so before Jesus faced His accusers, eye-to-eye. Isaiah could not see the prophetic accuracy of these words, but these weren’t Isaiah’s words! This passage begins with, “This is what the LORD says….” These are, supernaturally, God’s words written through human hands.

I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame. – Isaiah 50:6-7

This passage is accurate because it came directly from the heart of The Father, our Creator, who resolutely determined what the outcome of His story would be from the beginning of time. Father, Son, and Spirit knew the end from the beginning, and the same God who decisively determined the Way of the Cross is the same God we find in human flesh: Jesus, who steadfastly set His face like flint.

As He carried the Cross to Golgotha, the crowds could see his resolve. They locked eyes with those of a Lion set to become the Sacrificial Lamb.

Just before His final journey to Jerusalem, Jesus had been attracting huge crowds as He calmed the sea (Luke 8:22), healed the sick (8:40-56), and fed the 5000 (8:12f). And then we read Luke 9:51, the “hinge” verse of the book of Luke. Everything before this verse is about His ministry; everything after it follows Jesus on His way to Jerusalem. After this verse, the crowds begin to thin, and the camera of the New Testament turns and looks directly into the eyes of Jesus. His gaze reflects pure determination, resilience, and tenacity as He decides that, against all advice, He will go to Jerusalem.

In response, the crowds disperse, the disciples doubt, and yet Jesus remains resolute, His eyes never diverting from His final destination. Everyone knew that if he went to Jerusalem, He would be put to death because he threatened the religious establishment. Those closest to Him try to talk Him out of going, but nothing and no one could dissuade him. You could see it in His eyes. This Lion is determined to offer Himself as the sacrificial Lamb, and there is no stopping Him.

The executioners didn’t take His life from Him. No one took His life from Him that day. Instead, He freely laid His body down and “gave up His Spirit,” as Scripture says. He quite literally died the very moment that He chose to die. He resolved to give up His life because His eyes were resolute on His ultimate prize: the salvation of many souls—the salvation of you and of me.

#devotional #god #jesus #christ #holy spirit #bible #scripture #christianity #faith #ministry #holy week #Easter #resurrection #daily devotional #daily devotion

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yieldfruit · 2 years

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Q: Did Jesus Really Exist?

A: Typically, when this question is asked, the person asking qualifies the question with “outside of the Bible.” We do not grant this idea that the Bible cannot be considered a source of evidence for the existence of Jesus. The New Testament contains hundreds of references to Jesus Christ. There are those who date the writing of the Gospels to the second century A.D., more than 100 years after Jesus’ death. Even if this were the case (which we strongly dispute), in terms of ancient evidences, writings less than 200 years after events took place are considered very reliable evidences. Further, the vast majority of scholars (Christian and non-Christian) will grant that the Epistles of Paul (at least some of them) were in fact written by Paul in the middle of the first century A.D., less than 40 years after Jesus’ death. In terms of ancient manuscript evidence, this is extraordinarily strong proof of the existence of a man named Jesus in Israel in the early first century A.D.

It is also important to recognize that in A.D. 70, the Romans invaded and destroyed Jerusalem and most of Israel, slaughtering its inhabitants. Entire cities were literally burned to the ground. We should not be surprised, then, if much evidence of Jesus’ existence was destroyed. Many of the eyewitnesses of Jesus would have been killed. These facts likely limited the amount of surviving eyewitness testimony of Jesus.

Considering that Jesus’ ministry was largely confined to a relatively unimportant area in a small corner of the Roman Empire, a surprising amount of information about Jesus can be drawn from secular historical sources. Some of the more important historical evidences of Jesus include the following:

The first-century Roman Tacitus, who is considered one of the more accurate historians of the ancient world, mentioned superstitious “Christians” (from Christus, which is Latin for Christ), who suffered under Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius. Suetonius, chief secretary to Emperor Hadrian, wrote that there was a man named Chrestus (or Christ) who lived during the first century (Annals15.44).

Flavius Josephus is the most famous Jewish historian. In his Antiquities he refers to James, “the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ.” There is a controversial verse (18:3) that says, “Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man. For he was one who wrought surprising feats....He was [the] Christ...he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him.” One version reads, “At this time there was a wise man named Jesus. His conduct was good and [he] was known to be virtuous. And many people from among the Jews and the other nations became his disciples. Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die. But those who became his disciples did not abandon his discipleship. They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion, and that he was alive; accordingly he was perhaps the Messiah, concerning whom the prophets have recounted wonders.”

Julius Africanus quotes the historian Thallus in a discussion of the darkness that followed the crucifixion of Christ (Extant Writings, 18).

Pliny the Younger, in Letters 10:96, recorded early Christian worship practices including the fact that Christians worshiped Jesus as God and were very ethical, and he includes a reference to the love feast and Lord’s Supper.

The Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 43a) confirms Jesus’ crucifixion on the eve of Passover and the accusations against Christ of practicing sorcery and encouraging Jewish apostasy.

Lucian of Samosata was a second-century Greek writer who admits that Jesus was worshiped by Christians, introduced new teachings, and was crucified for them. He said that Jesus’ teachings included the brotherhood of believers, the importance of conversion, and the importance of denying other gods. Christians lived according to Jesus’ laws, believed themselves to be immortal, and were characterized by contempt for death, and renunciation of material goods.

Mara Bar-Serapion confirms that Jesus was thought to be a wise and virtuous man, was considered by many to be the king of Israel, was put to death by the Jews, and lived on in the teachings of His followers.

Then we have all the Gnostic writings (The Gospel of Truth, The Apocryphon of John, The Gospel of Thomas, The Treatise on Resurrection, etc.) that all mention Jesus.

In fact, we can almost reconstruct the gospel just from early non-Christian sources: Jesus was called the Christ (Josephus), did “magic,” led Israel into new teachings, and was hanged on Passover for them (Babylonian Talmud) in Judea (Tacitus), but claimed to be God and would return (Eliezar), which his followers believed, worshiping Him as God (Pliny the Younger).

There is overwhelming evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ, both in secular and biblical history. Perhaps the greatest evidence that Jesus did exist is the fact that literally thousands of Christians in the first century AD, including the twelve apostles, were willing to give their lives as martyrs for Jesus Christ. People will die for what they believe to be true, but no one will die for what they know to be a lie.

Source: https://www.gotquestions.org/did-Jesus-exist.html

#Jesus #archaeology #history #apologetics #Theology

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thedalatribune · 1 year

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Pyramidion with the Name of Huy, Deceased Shown in Adoration From Deir el-Medina, Egypt (1335 - 1295 BC) Louvre (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)

Maundy Thursday 2023: The Passover In Egypt & Communion

...at the height of Egypt’s power, in the amazing 18th dynasty of Egypt, God Jehovah devastated one entire nation in an incredible display of supernatural miracles like the world had never seen, all to let His people go.

Finally, there was the death of the firstborn... God came through that land, and He said, “I’m going to take the life of every firstborn child, and every firstborn of the animals. They’re going to die in one night when the angel of death passes. And He took Pharaoh’s own son, and then and only then did Pharaoh finally say, “Get out!” And then he changed his mind and tried to chase them, and God drowned the entire Egyptian army in the Red Sea.

Listen, when God says, “I’m going to let my people go,” He’s going to let His people go. If a Jew ever questioned the saving, redeeming, delivering power of God, all he had to do was go back to this tremendous event; that was the touchstone of God’s redemptive power. And God wanted them to never forget it, and so God gave them the Passover, and said, “Let it be a memorial, that I am a God mighty to save.”

And so they kept Passover year, after year, after year, after year, until one night there came a very special Passover, like no other Passover had ever been. This Passover was special. Jesus was gathered in an upper room, and He was gathered there with His disciples to eat the Passover; that’s why He was there. It was the night before He would go to the cross, and it was time to celebrate the Passover, to remember God’s saving power, and to remember it in terms of the deliverance from Egypt. But in the middle of that Passover Jesus did an amazing thing, an amazing thing. Just as they were ready to look backwards to Egypt as the great evidence of God’s saving power, Jesus transformed the Passover into something brand new.

You want to know how He did it? This is how the Passover went. The presiding person pronounced a blessing called the Kiddush. That blessing was over the first cup of wine which was red, and then the wine was drunk, and then passed to the others to drink. It was followed by a dipping of the unleavened bread into what was known as bitter herbs: the unleavened bread, the bitter herbs. Bitter herbs were kind of a fruit sauce. That is the sop that Jesus dipped with Judas.

Then came an explanation of the meaning of Passover. And then came the food for the meal, the sacrificial lamb; and it was to be eaten, because God passed over the lamb, where the lamb’s blood was sprinkled, and saved the firstborn. And then they sang the Hallel: Psalms 113 and 114, the first part of it.

And then the leader of the Passover picked up the second cup of wine. And then after that, he picked up the unleavened bread and he blessed God, and he ate the unleavened bread. And then he picked up a third cup of wine. And at that moment something amazing happened. Jesus, who was the leader of this Passover, when He got to the unleavened bread, said, “This is My” - what? - “body, which is given for you.” And when He came to the cup, He said, “This cup is the New Testament in my blood. This do as oft as you do it in remembrance of” - Egypt? No. What? - “Of Me.” And Jesus literally transformed the Passover into the Lord’s Table.

Now, beloved, when we look to see God as a Savior, where do we look? To Egypt? To where? To Calvary; to the Cross. Listen, if you think it was a mighty display of God’s saving power in Egypt, look again at the cross. There He didn’t deliver people from a nation, He delivered people from sin - an infinitely greater miracle. And so Jesus turned the Passover into the Communion.

Beloved, when we come to the Lord’s Table now, we come to remember the power of our redeemer God as displayed in the cross of Jesus Christ. Let’s pray together. While your heads are bowed, let me just speak for a moment to you.

The Table of the Lord is just that: the Lord’s Table. He turned the Passover into the Communion. He said, “From now on, the bread is representative of My body; the cup is representative of My blood. I am the living illustration of God’s redeeming power.”

John MacArthur God vs. the Gods of Egypt

#Pyramidion with the Name of Huy Deceased Shown in Adoration #Egypt #Egyptology #Artifact #History #Archaeology #Museum #Louvre #Abu Dhabi #United Arab Emirates #John MacArthur #God vs. the Gods of Egypt #Theology #Passover #Communion #Maundy Thursday #Holy Week 2023

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peaceofthespirit · 2 years

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Dr. Chrissy Stroop (an ex-evangelical atheist writer I follow on twitter) often makes such great points about how we can't just say "oh those people aren't real christians!!!" when fundies do something regressive in the name of Jesus. Those people have arguments that still use the bible and Christian tradition, whether we like it or not.

Melissa Florer-Bixler, a Mennonite pastor and writer, also recently brought up that "Christian" is pretty much a broad sociological category unified only through members' self-identification.

I've been thinking about all this a lot. One thing I went through as I began deconstructing was my relationship to the Bible and Christian tradition. In some ways, tradition didn't matter for me as much, since I grew up non-denominational in a church that wanted to get rid of "idolatrous" traditions and get back to the spirit of the "early church." But when it came to scripture, there was apparently no valid questioning of it in their eyes (which is hilarious considering that the biblical canon didn't exist in the early church?) Anyways, after I began to read the Bible more critically (and keeping in mind historical or cultural context/differences), I began to realize that I sometimes just didn't like what it was saying. I typically have never felt that way when I read teachings ascribed to Jesus (at least in terms of the basic meanings), but other parts of the new testament? Sometimes I just disagree (same goes for the old testament too but I'm talking about the explicitly Christian texts here). And many critical, biblical scholars assert that a lot of the new testament disagrees with itself in many places anyway (letters and texts written by different people who probably didn't agree on every detail?? hello??). So for me, I continue to identify as Christian because I see myself as a follower/disciple of Jesus, or at least someone in constant dialogue with his teachings (not to say one can't ever go further or find new insights). But while the evangelicals I grew up with claim that they are Christians because they affirm specific things about the person, death, and "resurrection" of Jesus, their Christianity is more than just that. No matter how much they love to claim that you don't need "works" for salvation (that's a whole other can of worms), they still follow so many rules and take the whole Bible extremely seriously/literally (at least their specific interpretations) and refuse to "disagree" with the canon texts.

So I then I see people say stuff like "how can I stay Christian? Especially when Christians are so terrible?" Well first of all, what matters first and foremost is your actions and well-being. If you don't want to engage with Christian texts or traditions anymore, or don't want to call yourself a Christian, that's totally valid. In fact, I think that Jesus himself would totally understand. Just go be a good person and take care of yourself.

However, I personally have no issue identifying as a Christian, largely because what I believe is so different from what the fundies believe. Maybe I would struggle if I was still holding the text in a similar regard to them and sticking to fairly "orthodox" church teachings/canons/etc. Because while one can be progressive and still take the Bible somewhat literally, you get the same issues of how tightly you are holding on to certain interpretations, presuppositions, historical pictures, and etc. You see how someone who has a strong allegiance to a specific church/understanding in a way that parallels your own convictions can turn out to be so un-progressive.

So what I say to that is, let go of certainty, and hold on to what you love about Christianity (which is typically the essence of Jesus's messages). Don't be afraid to be someone who others wouldn't really consider "Christian" because you are willing to eschew the hierarchies that have made their way into the church and traditional theologies.

#idk where i was going with this but i wanted to get it out #personal #progressive christianity #exvangelical

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altschmerzes · 1 year

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Hey! I just read your post about the John chapters in Nona the Ninth and their corresponding book of John verses, and I'd love to read more! If you have a link to share, that would make my day.

YES OKAY CRACKS KNUCKLES HERE WE GO

for context: the john chapters in nona the ninth correspond to the book of john in the gospels of the new testament in the bible. i'm a theology nerd who has a degree in religion and - after first going a little nuts about the positioning and regard of john compared to matthew, mark, and luke in the gospels - i looked up the verses before reading the sections, jotting them down as i went, only to discover the verses had a pretty much DIRECT literal or thematic link to what was about to go. under the cut, i'll go into the verses and the summaries i wrote of the john chapters in nt9 to explain this to some friends. (my familiarity with the christian NT is a liiiiittle less than my familiarity with the torah, Being Jewish And All, but i think i'm pretty on the money with this one.)

for ease of clarity, the structure is 'verse from john, followed by what i refer to as a summary of the corresponding section in 'the gospel of the world's smallest violin.'' also, sections of the bible are sometimes given titles. so the title bit there with the quotes from john refer to that section's title.

also worth noting some of these quotes make me, as a jew, kind of. uncomfortable or annoyed but i'm putting that aside for the moment for the sake of ~literary analysis. also also, the quotes are from the nrsv for the most part.

John 20:8

The Empty Tomb Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside, and he saw and believed.

summary of the gospel of the world's smallest violin section:

we're introduced to the whole bit of that. john starts his story about what happened. he talks about how they believed what they were doing was going to work and it would be okay. the cryo plan. the others had questions but he knew it would be fine.

John 5:20

The Healing At The Pool

For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.

summary of the gospel of the world's smallest violin section:

they get shut down by the gov't. john and company start to get creative. the general public realizes everything is fucked vis a vis climate change. john starts getting into it with ulysses and titania - naming them, spending time with them, etc. most importantly, the bodies he touched stayed uncorrupted. they do not rot.

John 15:23

The Vine and the Branches

Whoever hates me hates my Father as well.

summary of the gospel of the world's smallest violin section:

they start believing him with what's going on. the bodies still don't rot. they're trying to figure out how to make it not real, how to make them respond the way they should, it doesn't work. nobody was paying attention to them yet. augustine was trying to get him to snap out of it and knock it off. mercy had been trying, but had stopped by then. he 'introduces' mercy and augustine to the bodies - ulysses and titania. he's able to move them for the first time.

(that one doesn't quite connect as well but i think it still resonates thematically - the concept of pushback, of him producing these 'miracles' and basically being like. if you love me, you'll stop trying to make me stop. you'll listen to me.)

John 5:18

The Authority of the Son

For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath but he was calling God his own father, making himself equal to God.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

everybody else learns about what he can do as he gains more control over the body. everybody freaked the fuck out at first, they 'had a big fight over what it meant.' they ultimately believed, bought in, and john knew that 'it was fine.' he knew he'd 'touched something, come away with something, that could be used for good.' the line: 'Two scientists, an engineer, a detective, a lawyer, and an artist walk into a bar to help me become God.' they run trials. they knew if they were caught they'd be shut down and hushed up. he says they 'decided to stream' to tell the world.

John 8:1

this is a disputed part of the gospel of john. from the website i was using to reference: [The earliest manuscripts and many other ancient witnesses do not have John 7:53—8:11. A few manuscripts include these verses, wholly or in part, after John 7:36, John 21:25, Luke 21:38 or Luke 24:53.]

the included verse is: "Unbelief of the Jewish Leaders

-but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

john starts telling the world. making their big announcement, getting attention. the audience members walk away and freak out. people say he's a satanist, or an alien, or something. everyone starts asking him to fix their problems. they actually talk about jesus directly here, that helping people 'was christ's whole problem' and 'got way too much attention and brought the heat down on everybody.' the mount of olives bit, for context, is a time when jesus is interrogated by leaders of the community and basically put through some paces, authority and legitimacy is questioned, and he works in the community. etc.

John 19:18

The Crucifixion

There they crucified him, and with him two others - one on each side and Jesus in the middle.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

they all end up with interpol warrants. the world is closing in on them, only the inner circle left. he talks about being unable to bring back people once they're gone. he talks about how the gov't announces they've got this plan with the ships. he talks about how they kept being called monsters, crazy, etc. the uh. cow thing happens. he tells harrow/alecto 'they didn't give a fuck about trying to save you. they left.'

John 5:1

The Healing at the Pool

Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals.

corresponding smallest violin bit: they decide they're going to get people to take them seriously. the people who ask him to reanimate a world leader who's died show up and he goes to this very important meeting. he does it. they pay him a shit tonne of money and they're given the nuke.

John 3:20

Jesus Teaches Nicodemus

Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the fight for fear that their deeds will be exposed.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

he says they never wanted to actually use the nuke, just have it to use as leverage. force people to take them seriously, listen to them. among other things john says 'either you're the evil wizard and everyone wants to know what you think, or you're the good wizard and nobody cares.' the plan to leave earth is still accelerating, they're still not listening to him. they paid people to find facilities where the gov'ts are making the ships. they see the whole story is kind of. bullshit. he finally gives up trying to be a scientist and announces to the world he's a necromancer.

John 9:22

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who already had declared that anyone who acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

"They made it clear that they'd arrest anyone who tried to join us. Floods of people came anyway." talks about the general reaction to his necromancer announcement. he's kind of. scaring everyone with what he can do. he's still trying to figure out the soul question. there's an exchange of fire b/w the local cops and the new people trying to join them. john kills people for the first time i believe. he..... 'forgot' to start their hearts again. they dragged in all the corpses.

John 1:20

John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah

He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, "I am not the Messiah."

corresponding smallest violin bit:

the escape plan from the gov'ts escalates. they work out the truth about the plan - that there will be one ship, one leaving, and everyone else is big fucked. nobody was listening to them anymore. and they - the other og lyctors - are asking john for a miracle. to fix this. he says he has to stall the ship leaving. they use the nuke as blackmail. the ships are counting down to launch. he sends gideon to the meeting with the nuke. he tells everyone the nuke is armed. he also takes over the man he's been puppeting around to have a second nuke threat. they start telling him to stop, that he still has time to walk this back. he walks away from everything, doesn't want to deal with this anymore. cristabel uh. kills herself. and he touches the soul and then walks away from her. he's touched the earth too, alecto, and that's what he's after now. everyone is dying or dead. he absorbs alecto, or as much of her as he can. he makes her body. he Becomes God. blasts through the planets. etc.

John 5:4

The Healing at the Pool

One who was there had been an invalid for 38 years.

corresponding smallest violin bit:

john and harrow talk about god. about loving god. he keeps on going with his story. says he'll bring back the good ones. fix them. the ones he can stand to look at and forgive. he talks about how he took their memories. talks about how the deaths happened broadly. he talks about alecto, i can't die if she's alive, etc. he needs the lyctors around him etc. the tomb is the death of god. harrow talks about how she wants to find god. maybe she's in the tomb. she walks into the river and to the tower in the river, and says she'll start there.

OKAY. so. there you have it.

it's not always a perfect or clear analogy but given what i know of the gospels and the context, and in a more thematic rather than specific sense, they all line up pretty fucking directly.

this has been: a guided tour through the gospel of john and also the gospel of the world's smallest violin with your host, gav

#gav gab #gav answers #littlelull #nona the ninth #the locked tomb #nona the ninth spoilers #I WAS HOPING SOMEONE WOULD ASK NGL I'M INSANE ABOUT THIS STILL #i was literally like- looking up verses and writing them down on notecards as i went #and it gave me a view into what was about to happen in the same way that #when i was reading the dramatis personae for ht9 and first saw the name 'pyrrha' i was like #OH NO OH NO NAME OF ILL PORTENT IDK WHO YOU ARE BUT WHATEVER YOUR DEAL IS/WAS IT SUCKS

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officialyourdailyinspiration · 21 hours

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A Field Is Sown With Good And Bad Seed: At Harvest The Weeds Will Be Burned

24 He put-before them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of the heavens became-like a man having sown good seed in his field. 25 But during the men’s sleeping, his enemy came and re-sowed darnel between the wheat, and went away. 26 Now when the grass budded and produced fruit, then the darnel appeared also. 27 And having come to him, the slaves of the house-master said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Then from where does it have the darnel?’ 28 And the one said to them, ‘A hostile man did this’. And the slaves say to him, ‘Then do you want us, having gone, to collect them?’ 29 But the one says, ‘No, that while collecting the darnel, you may not perhaps uproot the wheat together with them. 30 Permit both to grow together until the harvest. And at the time of the harvest I will say to the harvesters, “Collect first the darnel, and bind them into bundles so-as to burn them up. But gather the wheat into my barn”.

The Mustard Seed: God’s Kingdom Will Start Very Small And Grow Very Large

31 He put-before them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of the heavens is like a seed of a mustard-plant, which having taken, a man sowed in his field— 32 which is smaller than all the seeds, but when it grows is larger than the garden-plants. And it becomes a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and are nesting in its branches”.

Like Leaven In Bread, God’s Kingdom Will Permeate The World

33 He spoke another parable to them, “The kingdom of the heavens is like leaven, which having taken, a woman concealed into three measures of wheat-flour until which time the whole thing was leavened”.

Jesus Spoke In Parables In Fulfillment of Psalm 78:2

34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables. And He was speaking nothing to them apart from a parable, 35 so that the thing might be fulfilled having been spoken through the prophet saying “I will open My mouth in parables. I will utter things having been hidden since the foundation of the world” [Ps 78:2].

Jesus Teaches His Disciples Using Parables

36 Then, having left the crowds, He went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Make-clear to us the parable of the darnel of the field”. 37 And the One, having responded, said—

Jesus Explains The Parable of The Good And Bad Seed Sown In The Field

“The one sowing the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 And the field is the world. And the good seed— these are the sons of the kingdom. And the darnel are the sons of the evil one. 39 And the enemy having sown them is the devil. And the harvest is the conclusion of the age. And the harvesters are angels. 40 Therefore, just as the darnel is collected and burned up with fire, so it will be at the conclusion of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will collect out of His kingdom all the causes-of-falling and the ones doing lawlessness. 42 And they will throw them into the furnace of fire. In that place, there will be the weeping and the grinding of teeth. 43 Then the righteous ones will shine-forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let the one having ears, hear. — Matthew 13:24-43 | Disciples’ Literal New Testament (DLNT) Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing Cross References: Genesis 18:6; 2 Samuel 23:6-7; Psalm 78:2; Psalm 104:12; Ezekiel 17:6; Daniel 3:6; Daniel 12:3; Zephaniah 1:3; Matthew 5:37; Matthew 8:20; Matthew 12:32; Matthew 13:1; Matthew 13:3-4; Matthew 13:44; Matthew 13:49; Matthew 17:20; Matthew 20:1; 1 Corinthians 15:42

#Jesus #parables #the Parable of the Weeds #parables explained #mustard seed #yeast #Matthew 13:24-43 #Gospel of Matthew #New Testament #Disciples' Literal New Testament Bible #Reyma Publishing

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troybeecham · 7 months

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Today, the Church honors St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist.

Ora pro nobis.

Matthew the Apostle (also known as Levi) was, according to the Bible, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and, according to Christian tradition, one of the four Gospel writers (Evangelists). Among the early followers and apostles of Jesus, Matthew is mentioned in Matthew 9:9 and Matthew 10:3 as a publican, or tax collector, who, while sitting at the "receipt of custom" in Capernaum, was called to follow Jesus. He is also listed among the twelve, but without identification of his background, in Mark 3:18, Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13. In passages parallel to Matthew 9:9, both Mark 2:14 and Luke 5:27 describe Jesus' calling of the tax collector Levi, the son of Alphaeus, but Mark and Luke never explicitly equate this Levi with the Matthew named as one of the twelve.

We do not know much with certainty about Matthew himself beyond what is mentioned in the Scriptures. He was born some time in the 1st c. AD, probably in Galilee, and was the son of Alpheus. As a tax collector he would have had to have been literate in Hebrew Aramaic, Latin, and Greek. His fellow Jews would have despised him, and all tax collectors, for what was seen as collaborating with the Roman occupation force and being therefore a traitor.

According to the Gospel, Matthew was working at a collection booth in Capernaum when Christ came to him and asked, "Follow me." With this simple call, Matthew became a disciple of Christ. After his call, Matthew invited Jesus home for a feast. On seeing this, the Scribes and the Pharisees criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners. This prompted Jesus to answer, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." (Mark 2:17, Luke 5:32)

The New Testament records that as a disciple, he followed Jesus, and was one of the witnesses of the Resurrection and the Ascension of Jesus. Afterwards, the disciples withdrew to an upper room (Acts 1:10–14) (traditionally the Cenacle) in Jerusalem to await the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, after which the disciples remained in and about Jerusalem and proclaimed that Jesus was the promised Messiah, and performed many miracles. The Scriptures record that many came to the Faith, including a large number of priests.

In the Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 43a) "Mattai" (a nickname for Matthew in Hebrew Aramaic) is named as one of five disciples of "Jeshu". Later Church fathers such as Irenaeus (Against Heresies 3.1.1) and Clement of Alexandria claim that Matthew preached the Gospel to the Jewish community in Judea, before going to other countries. Ancient writers are not agreed as to what these other countries are. The Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church each hold the tradition that Matthew died as a martyr. The Babylonian Talmud appears to report his execution in Sanhedrin 43a.

According to Church tradition, while preaching in Ethiopia, Matthew converted, and then consecrated to God, Ephigenia of Ethiopia, the virgin daughter of the Aethiopian King Egippus. When King Hirtacus succeeded Egippus, he asked the apostle if he could persuade Ephigenia, his neice, to marry him. Matthew thus invited King Hirtacus to a worship service the following Sunday where he rebuked the king for lusting after the girl, as had consecrated herself to God and therefore was the bride of Christ. The enraged King ordered his bodyguard to kill Matthew who stood at the altar, making him a martyr.

Early Church tradition holds that the Gospel of Matthew was written by the apostle Matthew, sometime between AD 40-51. This tradition is first attested, among the extant writings of the first and second centuries, with the early Christian bishop Papias of Hierapolis (c. AD 60–163), who is cited by the Church historian Eusebius (AD 260–340), as follows:

"Matthew collected the sayings of or about Jesus in the Hebrew Aramaic language, and each one interpreted them as best he could." Likewise, early Christian theologian Origen (c. 184–c. 253) indicates that the first gospel was written by Matthew, and that his gospel was composed in Hebrew Aramaic near Jerusalem for Hebrew Christians, which he then translated it into Greek. The Hebrew Aramaic original was kept at the Library of Caesarea. Sometime in the late fourth or early fifth century, the Nazarene Community transcribed a copy for Jerome, which he used in his work. This Gospel was called the Gospel according to the Hebrews or sometimes the Gospel of the Apostles, and it was once believed that it was the original to the 'Greek Matthew' found in the Bible.

We thank you, heavenly Father, for the witness of your apostle and evangelist Matthew to the Gospel of your Son our Savior, Jesus; and we pray that, after his example, we may with ready wills and hearts obey the calling of our Lord to follow him; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

#father troy beecham #christianity #jesus #god #saints #salvation #peace #martyrs #faith #early church #new testament #second temple Judaism #second temple jewish theology #evangelist #Gospel

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a-really-big-cat · 1 year

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literally baffled by the insinuation by Chick that Second Temple Judaism was somehow a false religion

as if the Holy Family were not pious Jews...and as if the great majority of the Bible is not made up of constant affirmations of the truth and central importance of Jewish religion and all the trappings of the Temple...

regardless the New Testament actually does explicitly define the role and function of the new priesthood, because the first priests were of course the Apostles, and the Apostles went on and ordained others:

Matthew 28:16-20 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

<16> Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. <17> And when they saw him they worshiped him; but some doubted. <18> And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. <19> Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, <20> teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age."

John 20:20-23 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

<20> When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. <21> Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." <22> And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. <23> If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

1 Corinthians 11:23-29 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

<23> For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, <24> and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." <25> In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." <26> For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. <27> Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. <28> Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. <29> For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.

#chick tracts #jack chick #christianity #catholic church #catholicism #protestantism

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dailyaudiobible · 1 year

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1/2/2023 DAB Transcript

Genesis 3:1-4:26, Matthew 2:13-3:6, Psalm 2:1-12, Proverbs 1:7-9

Today is the second day of January, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and it is great to be here with you today on day two of our grand adventure through every book, every chapter, every verse in the entire Bible, welcome back. This is sort of move in week, where we just kind get our bearings and our rhythm and then realize, pretty quickly, how poignant the Bible is and can be. And so, as we just began the journey yesterday, we began four books Genesis, in the Old Testament. Matthew, which is the first book of the New Testament. And then Psalms and Proverbs, and that’s a lot of moving in, in one day. And so, we’re taken a few days just to kind of go over, kind of give an overview of what it is we’re reading. And so, we oriented ourselves a little bit to the book of Genesis yesterday. And we’ll do the same thing when we get to the book of Matthew today. But before we get to Matthew, we have another step forward in the book of Genesis. We’re reading from the New Living Translation this week, Genesis chapters 3 and 4.

Introduction to the Book of Matthew:

Okay, so yesterday we began the book of Matthew. We didn't talk much about the book of Matthew. But if we will recall, we read an extensive line of genealogy that led us all the way to the birth of Jesus. And then, we went through the birth narrative and we we’re just talking about how we just came through this season. And so, it's very familiar in our minds. And I mentioned that those genealogies, although they may not be the most interesting things to read or hear, are very important when we come across them in the Bible. People that we met in the book of Matthew yesterday, are all people that we will get to know. Every single one of those names are people that we will encounter again, as we move our way through the Old Testament. Which brings us to today, where we kind of dive into day two in the book of Matthew. But let's just do a little fly over. Matthew is a part of a grouping of books, just like Genesis is a part of a grouping of books. So, yesterday we talked about Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy; the first five books in the Bible. They are known as the Torah, as they are grouped together or the Pentateuch. So, Matthew is a part of a grouping of books. And you probably already know this, but Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are known as the four Gospels. And each one of the Gospels, and we’ll go through them in order, so we did spend quite a bit of time here at the front of the year with Jesus. Because the gospel narratives of the story of Jesus life and ministry, and his teachings. And as Christians we center our lives around what He was teaching and what He is teaching. So, in the New Testament, we will be moving right through the gospels. So, we get to kind of walk right alongside Jesus, be in the crowds with Him. Be among the disciples, become a disciple of the Savior Jesus, as we move through the Gospels. Matthew was one of the 12 disciples of Jesus, so he walked with Jesus literally and heard Jesus on a daily basis. He was a disciple. So, he had devoted his life to following his Rabbi, following Jesus as a rabbi and they came to understand that Jesus was more than Rabbi. But we’ll get to that as we move through the Gospels. Nevertheless, Matthew had first-hand knowledge of what he's talking about. And as we will discover, Matthew in his previous life before becoming a disciple of Jesus, was a tax collector. So, he was, he was a hated person and he was very just disliked because to the Jews, Matthew’s a Jew collecting taxes on behalf of Rome, from the Jewish people. And so, he's looked at like, basically like a trader. And the way that taxes worked in the Roman Empire among people like the Jewish people, somebody or somebodies with lots of money, would approach the Roman government and say we want to collect taxes from Roman and then they pay a bunch of money to basically buy the rights to collect taxes on behalf of Rome. And then those people who bought that right, hire people to actually go do the dirty work and collect the taxes. And in the process, you can imagine that there is corruption involved and so, there's over taxation that ends up in the pockets of the tax collector. And so, these people are not well-liked. So, when a Jew is collecting taxes on behalf of Rome for another, from another Jew, that just seems disingenuous. And so, they were not liked. And so, the first thing we should probably just kind of understand here is that Jesus called as one of his 12 disciples, people who would live and walk with him during his earthly ministry. He called a person nobody liked. He called an outsider. That is not only riveting but important, because as we read through the book of Matthew, there's a lot of things that happen but the outsider. Or rather the inclusion of the outsider in God's kingdom is something we will see quite clearly, if we're looking for it. And we can nod our heads yes, and shake our heads yes, thank God that He loves the outsider, but the challenge then becomes, how are we treating the ones on the margins? How are we treating the outsider? Because we have an example of Jesus, and we claim to be His followers, His disciples, we claim that our faith and our goals are to become like our Savior, to become Christ-like. If we do not conduct ourselves in any way like Jesus, then what are we saying? Words are just falling from our lips that mean absolutely nothing. They’re just a black puddle on the floor, they mean nothing. Jesus called Matthew. Matthew left everything to follow Jesus. So, we’re getting the perspective of a person who left a certain kind of life and entered a completely different kind of life and was utterly transformed. The text, itself, in the book of Matthew, is aimed at Jewish believers. It's a very Hebrew centric gospel, it quotes from the Old Testament more than any of the other Gospels do, and it works harder than any of the other Gospels do to reveal Jesus fulfilling Hebrew prophecy. More than that, and if this is your first time through the Bible, like if you've wandered in here going, I've got to find some sort of rootedness in spirituality, we get to meet Jesus, we get to walk alongside Jesus, we get to know Him pretty well, and we get to know His style. And we to see His rabbinical teachings, in the way that you would teach in parables. Which are like, which are like illustration stories that have layer, after layer of meaning that can be pondered. So, that the meaning is far greater than the amount of words that were used to tell the story. And there are over 20 parables that are in the book of Matthew. So, we’ll obviously read every word of them. And then lastly, we will see and we will hear Jesus speaking about a kingdom. A kingdom that is of God. In fact, it's God's kingdom. And Jesus speaking to Hebrew people, they weren’t unfamiliar with this concept. And they wished for God's kingdom, but they were in a position, and we’ll go through all of the story, as we go through the Bible, but they were in a position in the first century, when Jesus was upon the earth, where they lived in a land that had been, at one point, their ancestral homeland. But at this point in history, it was part of the Roman Empire. It was a province of the Roman Empire, the province of Syria. But what the Hebrew people wanted was to find a Messiah, some leader, a Messiah, a godly character, a godly person, who could rally people together, and would lead people in the truth but that would also lead them into battle, to overcome miraculously Rome, and throw them out of the land, and then they could have this kingdom of God again, they could have their land back after a millennia. So, Jesus comes walking through the countryside, village-to-village, speaking to people who understand this concept and have this seething rage toward Rome because they are marginalized and oppressed. And He announces the kingdom of heaven is at hand, they’re listening. This could be that guy. He could lead them into battle. And so, Jesus continues to teach about the kingdom of heaven. And it turns out that the kingdom of heaven isn't something that's coming. It's something that is. Is here. Is now. And is coming, its fullness is coming, but it's here now. And so, Jesus reveals the kingdom of God. And it's not the kingdom that the people were expecting. And we’ll get to see the tension that arises from that. So, there’s a little bit of a flyover of Matthew. Let's dive into our day, to our second reading from the gospel of Matthew, which will be chapter 2 verse 13 through 3 verse 6.

Commentary:

Okay, so we've already spent some time talking about Matthew. And I don't want to overwhelm us with all kinds of information but as we’re moving in, it's really, really important that we get oriented to the story and understand what's going on here. And the book of Genesis today, we found out what happened to us, because yesterday, we’re reading through the creation narratives and we’re getting this glimpse of things as they were intended to be. So, yesterday I was just saying like let’s take a step back and look around and we have to acknowledge that something happened because this isn't perfect. We have all kinds of conveniences and a beautiful planet to live on, that sustains our lives, but we are a mess. Something happened. And that's what we get to see in the book of Genesis today with the third chapter of Genesis. One of the saddest moments in the Bible and there are some sad moments in the Bible, but this is one of the saddest of them all. We know the story as the fall. The fall of mankind and knowing that sets up the trajectory of the rest of the Bible. The rest of the story. God made something perfect, including perfect human beings, who wanted knowledge of good and evil, instead of trusting God to sort that out. And we have been using this knowledge ever since to understand something that is far beyond our understanding, the love of God. And we have made a colossal mess out of an awful lot of things, as we all know. We broke the story. I mean, that’s what we see here in Genesis 3. We see what happened. The rest of the story is one of a God who will not stop putting things back together again and inviting his people to be intimately involved in that process. And it's very easy to think and I’ve thought like, I mean I’m a child who grew up in a pastor's home, so the Bible stories are stories I've heard from before I could even talk. And this story of…of the garden of Eden and the fall of man and the talking serpent and the swinging swords from the Angels guarding the entrance to the garden of Eden, like I can still see this imagery from my childhood trying to imagine it. But even as a child, I was like why would God put that tree in the garden in the first place, if it were the possibility of breaking the whole plan? Why is that there? Why did they even get that choice? And as I have pondered that over decades, I have come to realize that love can't actually be love, if there's no way out. That's more like slavery. And an enslaved human being can do all sorts of things that they hate, and connect all sorts of ways that aren't true, including faking love, in order to avoid consequences. But love offered from the heart, a covenant of love, that's not something that can be faked, it's either true or it's false. God loved what He had made. He called it good and very good. He loved the children that He had made. He came to walk with them in the cool of the evening. Love isn't love, if there's no way out. And the tree was that opportunity, and we took the opportunity. And we can blame Adam and Eve, we can do all that kind of stuff but we’re doing the same thing every day, because what is ultimately happening in the book of Genesis is deception was introduced into the story. This serpent is having this conversation with Eve saying, really, God said you can't eat this? You’re not gonna die if you eat this. God’s afraid of you eating this. God’s holding out on you, if you eat this you’ll become like God. You'll know good and evil. You won't need this God who is withholding important information from you. Become God yourself. Eat the fruit. That has been our story ever since. But we will see as we read through the Old Testament and now that we’re reading through the Gospels and the life of Jesus that God has been putting things back together, ever since. Then we will continue with that journey going forward tomorrow.

Prayer:

And Father, we thank You for Your word and we thank You for allowing us to gather, to be in the world at this time, with this technology and able to be far-flung all over the world, representing all kinds of different cultural contexts, all stripes and flavors of theological persuasion. We’re able to come here together, around the Global Campfire and immerse ourselves in what the Bible says by simply reading and absorbing it together. Thank You for this gift. And, Holy Spirit, although this may be the first time that we ask this year, it won't be the last, lead us into all truth. This is something promised in the Scriptures. We believe that You will. Our role will be to be openhearted and openhanded as You lead us. So, thank You for inviting us to this grand dance, as we take the adventure of a lifetime through the Scriptures. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base, it is the websites. It’s where we find out what's going on around here, home of the Global Campfire that we come around every day and gather. The Daily Audio Bible app will allow you to see and interact with all things are on the website. So, download the app from the App Store that's associated with your device. Just look for Daily Audio Bible and you can download the app for free, so check that out. And while we’re doing some checking out, check out the different sections like the Community Section. There are links to get connected on social media or begin to follow. But in the Community Section we’ll also find the Prayer Wall, which will become an invaluable resource for us, as we navigate through the year, because it's always on and never off, it's always there. We can always go there. Can't sleep, want to focus outward instead of focusing inward on the problems that are keeping you awake, want to put your mind toward others, go to the Prayer Wall. Read what people are asking for prayer and what how they're sharing their lives and their stories, pray for them. Let them know you prayed for them. Or maybe you can't sleep because you’re getting crushed and you’ve been dragging chains around so long that you can't move anymore, and you feel alone. You're not. Go share your story. Let your brothers and sisters come around you, the Prayer Wall is always there for us, as we navigate through year together. So, check that out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. First of all, thank you, humbly, we wouldn't be in this if we weren't in this together. And now, we're in year 18, seven days a week. So, we’re in this together. And I thank you. There’s a mission here, to bring the spoken word of God read fresh every day and offered freely to anyone who will listen, anywhere on this planet, any time of day or night, and to build community around that rhythm of showing up every day. That’s what we call the Global Campfire, coming together every day, knowing for certain, this isn't a solitary journey. We are not on it alone. So, if that is life-giving to you, then thank you for your partnership. There is a link on the homepage dailyaudiobible.com. If you're using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement that you want to share, you can hit the Hotline button in the app, that's little red button up at the top or you can dial 877-942-4253.

And that's it for today, I'm Brian, I love you and I'll be waiting for you here, tomorrow.

Prayer and Encouragements:

James The Teacher, my friend, I’m Sparky in Texas. I heard you on community prayer brother, about your daughter's recital and it really hit home with me. As you know, my kids moved to Northwest, up around Portland with their mother. The day before they flew out, for the last time before moving, I had had a real tough time with the build-up. And the day before they left, I stayed up really late, really stressed out. And then that next morning, when my parents were flying out with them, they left at probably 430 or 5 in the morning, and I was so tired that I missed them leaving at the airport. And it crushed me, absolutely crushed me. And I could not forgive myself over it. I beat on myself. I knew my ex-wife was probably gonna do some beating on me too. And out of all of that, it occurred to me that God might not have wanted me there for a reason, in a weird way. We don’t understand, and I’m like you, I’m dead set, point on when I’m at work, running crews, running guys. And then it seems like I can miss things, ADD-ish at the house, and I feel like I fall short. But God’s got you. He knows what’s supposed to happen. And your daughter still loves you man. There’s many more, hopefully. Love you dude, good to hear from you.

Good morning, Daily Audio Family. This is God’s Chosen, calling from California. Channel to all the special needs parents, all the care givers and all those who have been praying and uplifting us in this prayer line. It’s been so encouraging. I myself, am a parent of a special needs daughter. But I thank God for His daily strength. She’s 7 years old. We begin our day with Psalms and we end our day with Psalms. And I’m gonna sing a song with her. Right here. This is the day, this is the day that the Lord has made, that the Lord has made. We will rejoice, we will rejoice, and be glad in it, and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day, this is the day, that the Lord has made. I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. Where? Down in my heart. Where? Down in my heart. I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. Where? Down in my heart to stay. And I’m so happy, so very happy. I’ve got the love of Jesus in my heart. And I’m so happy, so very happy. I’ve got the love of Jesus in my heart. Amen. Amen.

This is Jersey Jane for Jesus. And my prayer goes out to Greg from Southwest Sweden, I believe you said. Your wife is under terrible stress. Your mother-in-law is having stomach issues. You are having trouble finding a job until you finish your courses. I pray that all these things, calm down. That you should find work. That the stress in your wife’s job, should lessen. That it would be surrounded with peace. That her co-workers are kind and good and godly. That is the main thing, that they are godly. And I pray the blood of Jesus over your mother-in-law. That she be healed, through Jesus’s healing hands. And I wish you also, a Happy New Year, Greg. And it was nice to hear from you. And I pray, and I pray, and I pray. Amen.

Good evening, this is Peggy in Texas. And I come, asking for prayer for Ben my son. It was almost a year ago that I requested prayer for him. That was when he entered the emergency room of a local hospital. And he was diagnosed with COVID 19. He was placed on a ventilator and was there for 3 months. And had a feeding tube, of course. And all kinds of things happened to him during those months. He was, had a collapsed lung and he had a heart valve infection and he had another infection and then he had, he had a massive stroke, somewhere along the line. He was able to be removed from the ventilator in April and actually, since then, he has really been hospitalized or in a physical therapy rehab place, 12 of them as right now, as of right now. It’s been so hard. It’s been catastrophic. Ben, Ben needs prayer. He has tremendous tremors. And those tremors make it impossible for him to hold onto the bars and try to stand. We, he had surgery on both feet to straighten them in order that he might be able to stand. He has not had the opportunity to do that. He is suffering. It hurts to see a child suffer. He is a wonderful man; he loves the Lord. Has raised a precious family, four children, they are all out in their first jobs, after graduating from college. And he has a lovely wife. Ben’s illness has been catastrophic in so many ways.

Hello, no, are you sure. No, not Pelim. I never. Ah man, you just never know. I guess I just took this community for granted. I just, I never called and told him. I never told him how much he means to me. I never told him how much I enjoy his calls. I never told him. Man. Melissa, you’re one. I think you’re amazing. I think you’re great. I love when you call. I love your intro, I love your voice. I love how much capacity you have for everybody. You’re amazing and I just pray to God that He blesses you. Renzo, Renzo man, you’re special bro. You’re special kid. You’re special. I wish there was a way that you could share your music with us, man. I just, I wanna hear it bro. Man. There’s so many. There’s so many. You guys are special. I just can’t, I know death happens, I understand it. I know it. But I just, I just never told him. I never told him. It doesn’t matter but. I just wish I could have told him. God bless every one of you guys. Shawn 3:16.

Hey, my Daily Audio Bible siblings. Good morning. I just could not let this year go by before I say, Happy New Year to all of you. You’re all my siblings, young and older. So many of you have blessed me during the year, 2022. Thank you, Brian, Jill your voice in music. It’s amazing. I love being here. I love this family. For real, you guys are my family. I love you guys. You guys are my church. This is what I enjoy the most, though I do go to church on Sundays. And I enjoy it but this is my favorite part, my Daily Audio Bible. I want to wish you a Happy New Year, may this year, the new year bring us closer to the Lord. May we be consistent with the reading of the Bible. Yeah, I was consistent for the whole year of 2022, it’s amazing. I cannot do it without God and your prayers. So, yeah, I just wanted to tell you how much I love you guys. You guys are important in my life. Thank you for all your encouragement, your prayers. Oh, I have so many favorite ones here. This is Minita from Lambart. God bless you. I love you so much.

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dailyaudiobiblechronological · 1 year

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12/20/2022 DAB Chronological Transcription

1 Peter 1-5

Welcome to Daily Audio Bible Chronological, I'm Jill. Today is the 20th day of December. Man, it seems like we just got here, literally feels like we just got here a few days ago. Thinking back to everything and all that's happened so far this year but also remaining present in this moment as we take it in as we open our ears to hear, our eyes to see, and our hearts to receive all that God wants to say to us, speak to us and do in us through his word. As we just pause for a second, let go of all of the distractions of life, of the day, of the season. And I know there are many, I know there's so many at this time of year, especially us, mamas. We carry a lot at this time of year, trying to meet everyone's expectations, managing the list, buying the food, preparing the food, all of the things. I just want you to know that I see you, even though I don't see you, I know all that you are managing and handling and although it is more meaningful to hear it from the people that you're doing it all for, sometimes we just don't get to hear it. But I see you. I appreciate you and I know that it's happening because of you. You're the reason why all of it is getting done and it is a task of super woman proportions. So well done to you. Don't forget to breathe and don't forget to rest. Exhale afterwards, let your hair down and feel whatever it is that you need to feel. And just a word of encouragement, he will get through it and it will pass. But I pray that you don't lose your heart in the mix. Hold on to your heart, hold on to what is true and leave room for error and leave room for lots of grace. We're going to need it. We're jumping over to First Peter today brand new book of the Bible, First Peter, chapters one through five. And this week, we're reading the Common English Bible, First Peter chapter 1.

Commentary

So we started First Peter today and got pretty deep into it. Peter has some really important poignant things to say, but let's just remind ourselves who Peter is in the story of the Bible. We've been reading a lot of the words of Paul where Paul wrote a lot, if not most of the New Testament. But what we know about Paul is he never met Jesus face to face. Paul had a Damascus road experience that changed him dramatically through the power of God. We are now reading from Peter. Peter, one of Jesus twelve disciples that walked with Jesus, that literally knew him intimately, that watched miracle after miracle be performed and still questioned, still doubted, still had very human, I like to call human issues with Jesus. We're on the AD side of history after death and many years, many years down the road where we like to think we know exactly what we would do if we were there, if we were walking with Jesus. But what I find relatable through the disciples is their humanity, is their questions, their thoughts, their doubts, their needing of rebuke. But then let's take it a step further of who Peter is. Peter is the disciple that denied Jesus three times before his death. And here's, here's where I'm going with that piece. It is so easy for us to try to disqualify or diminish people by using the thing in their past. That is the thing that would take you out, that would absolutely take you out of the game, turn in your uniform and sorry, thanks for playing, but you just went too far. You just crossed the line. If we remember in the Gospels, Jesus very much knew which disciple. And they were all so curious, they're asking him at the Last Supper, Lord, is it me? Surely not me? I would never do that to you. And the beautiful thing about that story, about that table is Jesus knows exactly who is capable and going to do what they did that led to the events of his death. And Jesus still chose them. He still chose to eat with them. He still sat with them and asked them to do this. Eat at this table. Eat this bread that is my body. Drink this cup that is my blood. And remember, remember who I am. Remember who I am in your life. Remember what I did for you. Knowing that choice that Jesus made gives us the biggest clue to this story of his relationship with Peter. If Jesus chose what he chose, to do what he did, by partaking, inviting, accepting, he was setting Peter up for redemption. He wasn't setting him up for failure. He was setting him up to do what only Jesus can do. Redeem us, renew us, make us new again, to make us new again and then even again. And so when I remember the details of that story, when I realized that major piece of the story, peter was not disqualified. He was not thrown aside. Peter was set up for redemption. His denial of Jesus would not be the final word of his story. Even though many would discount him, many would dismiss him, many would chastise him, condemn him and throw him aside. But when you don't throw people away, look. Look at what God can do. This is true of us. And so we hear these words today from a man who walked with Jesus. We might hear them differently. We might consider them differently, and we might apply them differently.

Prayer

So Father, we thank you for the details of our stories. We thank you that you waste nothing. You throw nobody aside. You don't set us up for failure. You don't taunt us with things for failure. You use everything for your redemption. Thank you, God that you don't just also do that with us. You do that with us because of who you are. It's nothing about how great we are, but it is everything that you can do with somebody like us, despite our past, despite our mistakes, despite our failures and the things that people would throw in our face to diminish us, to take us out. And you say, Give me that very thing. And watch me work. Watch me make something new. Watch me redeem what you thought was dead. I thank you, God. I thank you for doing it in my life. I thank you that you're not done. You're not done with any of us. Let us remember that today in this reading today, that we would hear these words and they would change us deep within. Resurrect what is dead in us. Bring it to life as only you can do and make something beautiful. From the absolute disaster of what we think we have messed up in our lives. And we thank you, and we praise you. And we pray this now all in the name of the only one who was able to resurrect what was dead to live again. The name of Jesus, amen.

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