Matthew, Chapter 27 part 2

As mentioned yesterday, we are dealing with the most depressing moment in human history in chapter 27 with the death of Jesus. Today we will see that actual death, but in it there is a ton of symbolism. Anyone who has seen Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ has an idea of what the suffering and actual crucifixion was like. That movie was generally panned for its gore, but in reality what Christ had to endure was pretty close to that, if not worse. Flogging and then hanging someone on a Cross is certainly not a pretty picture, or a pleasant way to die, yet Jesus handled it with just about as much grace as one could handle it.

The small group from my church recently completed a study on the life of Jesus. When we came to the crucifixion I posed the question of what was more important: the actual death on the Cross or the Resurrection. Both were necessary, and I think both carry equal weight. The actual death is the pinnacle. It is the necessary sacrifice in order to fully eradicate human sin. At the moment of Jesus' death we see physical signs on earth that the bondage has been broken. The Resurrection, however, is also important in that it shows that death no longer held power over mankind because of the sacrifice.

50And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

 51At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. – Matthew 27:50-53

The curtain being torn in two from top to bottom is one of the most symbolic acts in human history. In Jewish culture, the curtain in the temple separated the Holy place from the Most Holy Place. Only the chief priest, on one day per year, could enter the Most Holy Place. Even then, he had to be purified through a series of sacrifices and rituals. A rope was tied around his waist and bells were hung from his robe. If he was not pure, God struck the priest dead. The bells let the other priests know if he was still alive, and the rope allowed him to be pulled out if he died in the presence of God. The curtain was a physical reminder of sin separating us from God, but Jesus' death broke that separation. The tearing of curtain meant that mankind could now speak directly to God.

57As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb. – Matthew 27:57-61

My pastor once said during a sermon, concerning this part of the story of Jesus, that Mary Magdalene and the rest didn't know they were living in the Bible. Despite being with Jesus for several years, they doubted the resurrection. Therefore, at this time they were going through one of the worst days of their lives. There are several schools of thought as to where Jesus' spirit was at this time, either in heaven or in hell, but on earth the situation seemed utterly hopeless. Matthew writes here to show that hopelessness, with the tomb being sealed and the guards being placed near it to set up coming events. He even goes as far to say that they are there to make sure the body is stolen and the Resurrection isn't faked. To me, this is where the crux of our faith comes in. We must believe that this is true and the Resurrection happened as it did. If it didn't, then there is no hope for humanity at all.

Matthew, Chapter 27 part 1

Chapter 27 of the book of Matthew represents the absolute worst day in the history of mankind. Throughout human history there have been some bad days, but nothing compares to this day when mankind rejected the very Son of God and put Him to death on the cross. Jesus' crucifixion is the result of anger, cowardice, jealousy, and human greed. All three elements are seen here as we have the greed of Judas, the jealousy of Caiaphas, the cowardice of Pilate, and the anger of the Jews. Today we will look only at the first half of this chapter, dealing with the trial and flogging of Jesus.

3When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned; he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. 4"I have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood."
      "What is that to us?" they replied. "That's your responsibility."

 5So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

 6The chief priests picked up the coins and said, "It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money." 7So they decided to use the money to buy the potter's field as a burial place for foreigners. - -Matthew 27:3-7

I wanted to highlight this section because it points out the absurdity of those responsible for condemning Jesus. The very money they had paid Judas was taken from the temple treasury. It was plenty good enough to give to him in order to condemn an innocent man, yet now they didn't want it back. They followed the law that they treasured so highly in this instance by not accepting blood money. What they conveniently ignored, however, was the part of the law that said murder was wrong. Apparently to them the law could be broken as long as it served their needs.

24When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. "I am innocent of this man's blood," he said. "It is your responsibility!" – Matthew 27:24

While the Jews could be condemned for their jealousy, greed, and anger, Pilate had a chance to save Jesus. As the Roman governor, Pilate was the highest local authority. He had the power to stop this trial, but took the cowards way out by not getting involved. His role is expanded in the other four gospels, but here his authority is plainly ignored. The Jews refused to answer his questions concerning the nature of this trial, and he even ignored his own wife. Speaking frankly, he disobeyed the first rule of marriage: always listen to your wife.

It is also earlier in this section that we jealousy and envy come into play. The Pharisees and Caiaphas in particular were jealous of the power and following Jesus had gained. These are the people that had waited for centuries for the Messiah to come. They had studied the prophesies and should have recognized Him instantly. When Jesus finally came, He began fulfilling these prophesies, but not in the way the Pharisees wanted Him to. The Pharisees had a certain view of what the Messiah should be. They felt He would elevate them on His way to becoming a conquering king. When Jesus spoke against them, they became enraged. Their own human perception got in the way of what Jesus was trying to accomplish. Essentially, Jesus was killed because He wasn't quite what they were looking for in a Savior.

Matthew, Chapter 26 part 2

I love the image of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane. I think it is an image that projects Jesus in His truest form. To this point we have seen Him exhibit both knowledge and power that illustrate Him as the Son of God. Sometimes it is easy to forget Him as anything else. One of His most important aspects, and indeed the aspect that gave His sacrifice on the Cross value, is the fact htat He is fully human as well as fully God. There have been glimpses of this throughout the book of Matthew, but it truly comes out in the garden.

36Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there and pray." 37He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38Then he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me."

 39Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." – Matthew 26:36-39

Here is a man that was perfect in every sense of the word. Just a few verses later we see that He had the power to call down the armies of heaven. He literally had absolutely no reason to fear any man. Still, Jesus was afraid and crushed by His burdens in this moment. I cannot imagine being in His shoes, but in my humanity I can't think of how burdensome the weight of not only every sin committed in history to that point, but the weight of every sin that would be committed until the end of time would be. Personally, I am currently having a day like many days recently where I feel crushed by the weight of my own sins and mistakes over the course of my life. I can't imagine what dealing with this weight amplified trillions of times.

This passage also shows Jesus' love for humanity, as well as His humility. He recognized that even He needed help with this burden. He therefore first seeks the company of his companions in his disciples to pray with him. They fall short, but He also seeks strength from the Father just as we seek strength from the Father. This makes Jesus, on His human side, no different than us! In the end Jesus somehow finds this strength, and is ready once He is confronted by Judas.

69Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. "You also were with Jesus of Galilee," she said.

 70But he denied it before them all. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

 71Then he went out to the gateway, where another girl saw him and said to the people there, "This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth."

 72He denied it again, with an oath: "I don't know the man!"

 73After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, "Surely you are one of them, for your accent gives you away."

 74Then he began to call down curses on himself and he swore to them, "I don't know the man!"

   Immediately a rooster crowed. 75Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: "Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times." And he went outside and wept bitterly. – Matthew 26:69-75

This is another lesson on the dangers of relying on our own strength. A mere few hours had passed since Peter had boasted he would never fail Jesus. In this section he fails miserably because of his lack of faith and conviction. This is a man that would go on to become the cornerstone of Christ's church in the first century. If someone like Peter can fail miserably, what chance do we have? The long term lesson is seen in his life after this moment. He was able to recover and, through Christ, accomplish great things. I take encouragement from this because it shows that all things are indeed possible through Christ.

Matthew, Chapter 26 part 1

Chapter 26 of Matthew takes an abrupt tone shift as we are brought back into the historical account of Jesus' final week on earth. It is almost as if the previous chapters have been Him pleading His case and leaving His most important instructions behind. Today we will see the beginnings of the plot to kill Jesus as well as the historical account of the Last Supper. Some of the most beautiful pieces of Scripture are found here because of Jesus' determination to face what He knew He had to face. We also see the most despicable side of man in Judas betraying Jesus for a mere 30 pieces of silver.

10Aware of this, Jesus said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her." – Matthew 26:10-13

This passage of Scripture is beautiful in its simplicity and serves as a powerful lesson that the disciples were far from perfect. This woman, who is unnamed, understood the sacrifice that Christ had to make on the Cross. Therefore, she took something that had incredible earthly value and gave it to Christ in order to honor Him for this sacrifice. The disciples, who had been traveling with Jesus for some time, were unwilling to believe yet that the Cross was necessary. They could not see past the earthly value of the perfume. Judas himself was blinded by greed at this point and disillusioned that Christ was not living up to his ideals of a Messiah. This would lead to his act of betrayal.

26While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body."

 27Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." – Matthew 26:26-29

For anyone who has ever attended a church regularly in their lives this is a very familiar piece of Scripture. I think that sometimes the symbolism of the Last Supper and subsequent Communion gets taken for granted. We go through the motions of accepting the body and the blood without giving much thought to what they mean. It is here that Jesus blends the old ceremony of the Passover, which signified God's covenant with the Jews, with the new covenant that he would lay down his own life to create.

This is something I haven't given much thought to every time I take Communion. I think it is difficult to truly grasp what this means. Not even the disciples truly understood it at the time, because less than 24 hours later all but one of them would desert Jesus at the time He needed them most. The original Passover was done as a sign of protection from almighty God. The Jews in Egypt followed explicit instructions knowing that by doing so God would intervene on their behalf. The symbolism of losing the firstborn in that judgment would carry over to Christ as He is the first and only son of God. The original covenant was no longer good enough, and in reality never was because it came from man. Only the sacrifice of the Son of God could intervene on our behalf. When we take Communion we must remember this.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. What role did greed play in Judas' betrayal?
   
2. Were the other disciples aware that Judas was going to betray Jesus?
   
3. Does Peter denying Jesus show a lack of faith?

Matthew, Chapter 25 part 2

Today we will conclude chapter 25 with the sheep and goats judgment. This is a section of Scripture that has long been confusing to many people. It is a section that almost makes it sounds like our salvation based on our works rather than by grace through faith. In truth, it outlines what our response to our salvation should be. It is still based on believe that Christ died for our sins, but instead we are to respond with service and obedience out of the joy in our hearts. To simplify, once we accept Christ our hearts are changed so that we want to do these things.

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

 40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' – Matthew 25:37-40

I think there are obvious and less than obvious ways of doing this. For example: if you give $12 million to a mission or an orphanage that is a pretty obvious way of taking care of other people. What makes me know that our salvation is not based on works, however, is that these grandiose gestures are not requires. Jesus did not establish a hierarchy of actions here. These great gestures carry the same weight as simply visiting a sick friend in the hospital or quietly listening as someone describes their problems. These types of things, done out of love, are exactly what Jesus is referring to here.

41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

 44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

 45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' – Matthew 25:41-45

I must admit that this is difficult for me to explain. To me, it is as if Christ is explaining the selfish nature of turning away from Him. If you do not accept the free gift of salvation given through His death on the cross, then it means you selfishly love yourself and your sin too much. In that case, Jesus views it as impossible to perform these acts with a pure heart. If you're performing these acts in order to gain salvation you are missing the point. Performing those acts in that regard is also done out a selfish nature because you're trying to earn something that cannot be earned. To me, it establishes Jesus' point even more clearly that the only way to the Father is through Him.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. Why are works important?
   
2. Why would works be forgotten without knowing Christ?
   
3. Are works then required once we accept salvation?

Matthew, Chapter 25 part 1

Yesterday's lesson is a very confusing one because of its context. It spoke of things that we do not know about for two reasons. First, they haven't happened yet. Second, they rest in the mind of God and God alone. Chapter 24 serves as basically a warning against delaying our decision to follow Christ. It is a warning that is carried over to today's lesson in the first part of chapter 25. Today we will touch on this warning as well as another warning to make the most of every opportunity we are given. Both have strong relations to chapter 24 because of the warning about not knowing the hour and the day.

10"But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.

 11"Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!'

 12"But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.'

 13"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour – Matthew 25:10-13

Jesus has always tried to make his points clear through His parables, which is what He is trying to accomplish with this one. Since I was a boy scout growing up, the motto of Be Prepared has long been a part of my life. In this parable we see the difference between being prepared and not. Those that did not bring oil with them showed a lack of faith. This carries over to today in that we show a lack of faith if we are not ready for His return at all times. Those that didn't bring enough oil were warned just as we are warned. As we see at the end of the parable, there is little sympathy for those that have not heeded such warnings.

24"Then the man who had received the one talent came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.'

     26"His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

 28" 'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' – Matthew 25:24-30

The second part of this chapter that I wanted to touch on today takes on a much different tone. It is about making the most of everything we are given in this life. It is an area where I have sadly fallen short time and again. It is an area where we all fall short because of our imperfections. There are times when I look back over the course of my life so far and I see nothing but missed opportunities. I have seen that a lot lately because of the current state of affairs with me at the moment. I see times where I have had great potential in many areas, but years later that is still potential and nothing solid. There are other times where I see areas of accomplishment. One of the greatest honors of my life is that I helped lead my wife to Christ. It is moments like that which give me a purpose and a reason to go on. I feel like it is in these moments that we do make the most of what God has given us. Just like writing this blog and my other blog. I feel God has given me this great talent, yet I let it lay dormant and misdirected for years. Now I am pursuing it with everything I have and He is opening doors I didn't even know were there.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How is it that we must always be ready?
   
2. How do you make the most of what is given to you?
   
3. What does this passage say about taking risks?

Matthew, Chapter 24

I have never given much serious thought to the end of the world. I have read the entire Left Behind series and I lived through Y2K without incident, but I have never seriously sat down and thought the world was going to end short of in 2003 when the Chicago Cubs came within five outs of actually going to the World Series. I recognize that it is something that is going to happen eventually, maybe even within my lifetime. It has been prophesized for years, however, from people as serious as biblical scholars to the World Weekly News. Still, it has not happened.

That brings us to chapter 24 of the book of Matthew. In this book, Jesus outlines His second coming in cryptic tales that have been studied for centuries. Just what can we take away from this section? It is quite complex in that the disciples are told that their generation would not pass away before these things will happen, but obviously all the disciples have been long dead. This section of Scripture is both beautiful and confusing at the same time. Let's take a look at some of the more important sections of this chapter.

4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains. – Matthew 24:4-8

Regardless of what this states, the inexorable march of time means we are closer to the return of Christ than ever before. We can see many of these events by looking at the news today. There is constant rumor of war and strife. The 20^th century saw more war and bloodshed than any other time in human history, and as a world society we certainly have the capability of topping that number through the use of modern weapons and warfare. Just last week we saw a devastating earthquake in China. Even here in Indiana, where earthquakes are very rare, my wife and I were awoken one morning a few weeks ago by a stunningly strong temblor.

Does this mean the end is near? Should we stand on street corners with placards proclaiming this? It is possible, but it is also possible Christ could be awaiting His Second Coming for a thousand years yet. It is clear from this chapter that there will be a Second Coming, if only because Christ's promises always come to pass. There is a certain amount of futility in looking for it because we don't know the date and time. Not even Christ knows the date and time.

36"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. – Matthew 24:36-41

We must always be ready for the Second Coming, even if we are not actively looking for it. This is clearly a warning to accept the gift of Christ's salvation through His sacrifice on the Cross simply because we don't know when He will return. There could be plenty of time to make this decision. We could all be long dead when the event finally happens. It is also entirely possible it could happen before you even finish writing these words. There are dozens of schools of thought on what will happen in that moment, but it is best to be prepared before instead of after.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How does this support the pre-Tribulation (Left Behind theory) of the Second Coming?
   
2. What other signs are present today from this chapter?
   
3. Is there a chance this isn't all true?