3/31/2021 0 Comments Matthew CommentaryMatthew, an ex-tax collector, writes this account of the life of Jesus to convince the Jews that Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah, and that their leaders are leading them astray. It is dated to be written prior to the destruction of the temple in AD 70. Matthew 1:
Jesus' genealogy has pointed mentions of 3 women of ill repute. Then against all conceivable expectations of contemporary people, God invades and gives something holy and not of this sinful world: God With Us. And the amazing horrifying, wondrous, momentous start of something big can only be known by whom God wills to reveal. Otherwise it is only another baby born out of wedlock, nothing, less than seemly, something to be forgotten about and not mentioned about in public. 2: Already devoured by the green eyed monster of Envy, Herod seeks after Messiah. Plagued with sense of inferiority and incompetence, Herod has no choice but use aggression as his arsenal to garner the fear of men and their obedience, and thus his petty rule. Herod also must eliminate any rival to his rule. He doesn’t care if it’s the Messiah, with a divine prophecy to hail His honour. No fear of God, no regrets. Protect his spot in the sun at all costs, for Herod is God. 3: John’s two contrasting treatment of the religious elite and Jesus, both of the parties wanting to go through the humiliating ceremony of declaring that they are no better than Gentile converts. Religious elites are better than the hoi polloi, and find the baptism meaningless, except baptism is drawing people away from their influence. To keep their prestige and credibility at all costs, they play whatever game to get the people’s loyalty back, like good politicians. Jesus are actually better than the hoi polloi, and finds the baptism meaningless, except He does whatever God commands. It allows Jesus to be identified with sinners, both Jews and Gentiles. 4: Of all the miracles Jesus can perform to prove His deity, He does healing, countering the effects of sin for the sick. Jesus, having his treasure in eternal things, focuses his responsibility toward God in every temptation. When you see Jesus, you drop everything like they don’t exist and go to Him, because you see His value far outweighs anything else. Matthew 5: Jesus blows minds. The good person test. Are you good enough to go to heaven? Are you just all wonderful inside? No murderous hatred, no greedy lust, reconcilable, no self-importance, not vengeful, empathetic kindness, sacrificial love for those who hate your guts and return your good with evil. Be perfect like God. Psst. The people going to heaven see themselves as destitute with nothing to offer God, who see themselves as helpless, who are needy of righteous perfection. They have self-control, not vengeful, have integrity, they reconcile, and they are not really popular. Mt 6: What you aim to achieve is what you get. You want temporal accolades, you got it. But you will reap no treasures in heaven, and you will not be full of light inside, hence a double face life. God is not distant and indifferent to your needs. And your needs are that you need to know about God’s self-binding in His duty to you as father, and that all reverence is due Him. Your need is to seek and almost encourage God to fulfill His purpose. Then you need consistent, righteous living. And be humble and know how dependent you are toward God for daily needs and how little you really need to serve God. "Your heavenly Father will also forgive...Your Father will not forgive...” The one in question is already a child of God, given eternal imperishable life, made alive and given the ability to love for their Saviour God and desire to obey Him. The kind of forgiveness God threatens to withhold is like the washing of feet, which is the washing of their conscience free of guilt on a daily basis for their joy of full fellowship with God and the child’s proper worship. It is to regulate the child’s sense of their Father’s pleasure or frown on their behaviour. You are not a walking mannequin, or an eating machine. Live for eternal treasures instead. Matthew 7: a sundry compilation of sermon messages that I’m sure took Jesus hours to expound on: 1. arrogant self-righteousness that makes you beyond criticism but makes you project your evil thoughts on others and criticize others without basis. 2. the importance of guarding what is precious to you away from people who don’t care for it. 3. becoming disillusioned and jaded and seeing God as indifferent while God is more than ready to give good things more than earthly fathers. 4. no hypocrisy in interactions. 5. way of salvation is not easy, and is not popular. 6. the charlatans who claim to be your shepherds will talk louder with their sinful words and behaviour as measured against God’s law. 7. deathly despairing end for the many who lacks no amount of wondrous miracles, but Jesus was not their master. These counterfeit professors are found out by the fact that true professors will not "practice lawlessness" and will do the "will of My Father." The false professors never possessed resurrection life and righteousness, never underwent spiritual baptism in Christ, are not slaves of Christ who desire and live righteously. They are hypocrites who busied themselves with religious things, but neither have acknowledged Christ as Lord nor have put their faith in Him. True professors of faith and possessors of eternal life will prove themselves as slaves of Christ by their actions and continual repentance; false professors will prove that they do not follow Christ by their actions. One can only behave according to who they are in their nature. If one is a slave of sin, then he will act like one; but if one is a slave of Christ, then he will act like one. 8. action produced by instruction assumes faith in the teacher to know about the future calamity. Jesus preaches with sharp clarity. No esoteric, garbled nonsense. Mt 8: Jesus breaks the ceremonial laws on cleanliness, and touches the untouchables. Rather than begin defiled, Jesus purifies the lepers. Wanting to be known for His preaching rather than for his miracle-working power, Jesus restricts unsolicited advertisements and highlights the importance of the law of God. The centurion high in empathy is able to extrapolate from his own experience in military hierarchy to acknowledge Jesus as having all power at least over the physical health domain. Jesus, master of communication, knows the issues of the heart, and interacts with people according to what each needs to hear. The same number of demons who were at work in Jesus’ times are at work presently. And they are really jarred by God’s presence. Matthew 9, 10 Jesus in one of the most telling ways tips the hand that He is deity by pronouncing the authority to forgive sins. Jesus consistently preaches truth through his ministering to those who see the need for a Saviour. Jesus “desires mercy and not sacrifice,” emphasizing God’s desire for an obedient and faithful heart which rests in God's provision of mercy rather than a self-righteous heart that adheres to external ceremonial laws in order to believe themselves to be righteous. Hence the spirit of Pharisees today also would believe in giving people a false assurance of forgiveness based on, for instance, how they prayed a prayer and professed faith once when they were younger while they show in the present no love for God and His will. Far from any call to append religion to your lifestyle, and go on your merry way of living, Jesus calls to a radically all-consuming, commitment to living for Him and him alone. Jesus first circulates the gospel to Israel, so as to finalize His judgment against Israel for rejecting their Messiah. Mt 11 Jesus, in love for John the Baptist, displays His miracles just for him, so that his faith may not fail. In contrast to John’s presupposition that Jesus would execute judgments and destruction, He comes to save first. Greater than the greatest OT prophet, is the least believer who proclaims the resurrection. The way into the kingdom is hard, and brutal, and is easily lost and forgotten. The entire spiritual realm is at war to preserve the truth of salvation. Stubborn and arrogant people with no desire to give up their high standing in society is implacable to any vehicle of truth of salvation, whether harsh and ascetic, or liberal and free. Greatest judgment is reserved for those exposed to greatest light. It is one thing to be Sodomite rapists. It is a whole another level to have seen Jesus and His works and be simply indifferent. God takes delight in showing special attention to those who acknowledge their dependence on God for knowledge. God takes delight in giving relief to those who are burdened with impossibility of works righteousness salvation. Mt 12,13 Jesus repeatedly and by their own opposition undermines the authority of the Pharisees who seeks micromanagement over people’s lives, and establishes Himself as the gentle and empathetic Lord who gives rest. Jesus uses logic to show “inconsistency is the sign of a failed argument” - James White - when accused of casting out demons by Satan. There is no possibility of forgiveness for someone who rejects God in literal light of absolute, undeniable evidence (miracles), and labels willfully the light as darkness. What more proof is there to give that Jesus is the Messiah? There is no more. In a similar way in modern times, there is no more forgiveness for someone with whom the Spirit has been wrestling in conscience and conviction who ultimately and consistently rejects and blasphemes God. There is an end to God’s striving with men. Jesus illustrates the overtly clean and religious as more demon-influenced and more doomed than outright pagans. Jesus preaches in parables to the masses as judgment. Jesus no longer gives them who seek Him for wrong reasons opportunity to hear the truth. It is also a mercy lest they incur greater judgment for having heard more and rejected it. mt 14,15 Contrast the petty ruler Herod: greedy, no self-control, easily manipulated by lust and inferiority complex, being enslaved to always having to make a show of himself. Curved inwards in self-indulgence and pride. Will do anything to keep people's servitude, even if it means killing a prophet. Enter Jesus, rather than curved inwards to his own need, is turned outwards towards other's needs. Rather than being feared, is sought after for his love and his power to provide. He does not jump at the opportunity to be made king, since He is no slave to public opinion, and His rule does not come from men. Jesus knows the disciples are His charge. But let the disciples struggle a bit in the waters. First things first: Communing with the God of the universe. There is really nothing to sweat about if you know you are part of God's plan. All the turmoil is part of the plan. He is not even going to run up to the boat. You are not in danger, contrary to evidence. The Master of communication without grace shuts down the Pharisees dead, declaring His observation of their hypocrisy and treating their highfalutin argument as contemptible. Jesus reveals the intention of his conversation was not at all to persuade the Pharisees. The disciples are naturally unsettled, and being afraid of the Pharisees' power, seek to temper Jesus' attitude. The same sun that hardens the clay melts the wax. No matter how much effort is made, the clay will always harden, and the wax will always melt. Jesus again shows mastery of communication by knowing how to interact with someone, this time with the intention to save. Seemingly aloof, and uncaring, Jesus saves the Gentile woman. Mt 16-18 Becoming self-conscious and drunk with Jesus' validation, Peter gives himself license to assume as Jesus' counsellor and has to be put at his place by Jesus through sharp rebuke, Jesus masterfully illustrates the radical nature of discipleship, following Christ even to death. Peter, not fully awake and uninhibited, says the first thing on his mind and wants to end it, and seal the deal of the kingdom there and then. No death of Messiah. Just usher in the kingdom. Jesus, God of all love and grace, becomes exasperated with His creation, whom He still loves and cares for. What a God! The faith, not the size of mustard seed, but LIKE a mustard seed. I still don't know what that means. Maybe the disciples did not give God the glory of miracles. The disciples simply ignore Jesus' preaching on His coming death because it does not fit their eschatology, and debates who gets the better seat in the kingdom. Jesus says: It would be better if you were killed than to cause a brother to sin: either through enticing them to sin , or provoking them to jealousy or bitterness by alienating them and belittling them in anyway. Treating them with such contempt will not end well for you, since the angels assigned to their care daily report every grievance that one believer has toward God. One angel can kill ten thousand men. Be careful to not waltz around the family of God, and think you can throw your weight around and ride roughshod with a small brother. God's heart is such that He seeks after that one insignificant sheep. Rather than shunning a offending brother, you go to him, knowing he is precious. Only after he proves himself obstinate, separate from him. Unmerciful and unforgiving heart will be tormented with guilty conscience and fear of hell. mt 19 Moses never commanded a divorce, but only used such situation as a conditional statement. Being stuck with a woman for life frightens men who are used to adulterous recycling of women, who are treated as little more than accessory. In any case whether you are single or married, the kingdom of heaven is all that matters, and is far greater reward to pursue after than after a fleeting pleasure. Jesus gets angry for disregarding the defenseless and voiceless. Jesus wisely exposes the young man's hypocrisy and disobedient heart. mt 20 Jesus makes no distinction between a hard working apostle and the thief on the cross, insofar as the reward of eternal life. In stark contrast to the preoccupations of Jesus to prepare the disciples for suffering, they seem to have retreated to their own delusion of glory without prerequisite humiliation. Jesus calls for a race to the bottom, seeking after duty and responsibility rather than power. mt 21 Jesus does not suppress his anger and frustration but bursts out in full action against those who do not belong in the place which people look to for higher order of meditation. Driving out currency exchangers must have made the poor people felt good. Having a high expectation appropriately from someone who has the responsibility to put out, but who lets down attracts a curse from Jesus, and becomes unfruitful and dies. Pharisees knew Jesus was the Messiah and wanted to kill Him in green-eyed jealousy. Jesus rightly refuses to answer to Pharisee's duplicitous demand for His authority: they were not interested in the question, only to undermine His credibility, and bolster their own. Thus Jesus plays them in their own lust for public opinion in catch-22, and gives the due lack of respect their question deserves. mt 22 Jesus shows Himself as the master of communication once again, in battle against the learned Pharisees and Sadducees. mt 23 If there were any ambiguity about Pharisee's intention to kill Him, Jesus makes sure of it now. Jesus excoriates Pharisees, and exposes their hypocrisy and their idolatry not in any redeeming sense, but to warn others. Instead of mitigating their guilt, Jesus will increase their guilt and bloodshed, so they dig themselves deeper in hell. mt 24 Jesus pronounces doom for religious system of works righteousness. the end of all things is coming. Christ will come back after His resurrection and ascension to set up His kingdom, and level all oppositions. Countdown has started to the Kingdom that all Israel were waiting for, but not quite the way they expect. the world will become darker and worse. Then the the light comes. mt 25 Jesus continues the warning to be ready for His unexpected return, so they will not lose their reward for obedience. For believers, stay faithful. For unbelievers, repent before it is too late. Jesus tells the tale of everyone having skills of varying degree. All that's required of them for full reward is faithfulness according to their capacity. God will add more responsibility if He wants. Then the final reward in future. It won't end well for the unbelieving and lazy heart who, rather than put to use what he knows about God and come to saving faith, would choose to waste away his skills and knowledge, and call God things like thief and cruel. The ones who will enter the kingdom will be those marked by their philos love: namely, love for fellow believers, Christ's image-bearers. mt 26 Jesus' persistent foretelling of His coming death and rejection by Israel starts to sour away the hardened kingdom hopes and dreams of the disciples. They become more and more sad that Jesus is going away, but more sad for themselves that they will not be ushered into the kingdom here and now. They have to wait while longer. Judas, having followed Jesus for personal gains, realizing Jesus will not bring the kingdom but promises tribulation for His followers, and plans to leave, Judas decides to get as much compensation as he can for the 3 year wasted time. Judas treats the Son of God, the Messiah of Israel, as much worth as a bad investment, to be sold like cheap stocks. Jesus, suffering the pain of anticipation of the horror of being made sin and absorbing infinite wrath of His loving Father, and being separated from Him, would have died of sorrow only if possible. It is the literally the worst fate to ever happen to a man. And it is necessary. I don't think Peter ever listened, or could due to his immense hard-headed self-confidence blocking up his ears. He didn't really deconstruct a lot false rooted pop culture beliefs about Messiah. mt 27 Judas' guilt overwhelms him, not toward repentance, but to end in suicide. True to their wolves in sheep's clothing character, the leaders couldn't care less about the turmoil of a soul. Straining out a gnat, but swallowing a camel, the priests doesn't keep the blood money, but kills Messiah. Jesus, completely trusting in God's vengeance, and submitting to God's plan for Him, is silent before ravenous accusers. Satan seeks to tempt Jesus into abandoning the cross, through abuse of every kind. Darkness for three hours. There is a mystery here that happened that involves the cup. Tearing of the veil of the Holy of Holies. Fulfillment of sacrifice system. The way to God is made. The resurrection of the many: a preview of future resurrection. mt 28 The elders perpetuate their guilt and fill up their cup by wilfully hating Jesus even after the sign of Jonah. Every time an angel appears in form, humans are dead terrified. Jesus is made Lord of lords and King of kings by the Father for His obedience to point of death. Jesus, God with Us, is with us always, even to the end. The only purpose of our existence in this world is to make little Christ-imagers in everywhere.
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CategoriesAll Discourse Doctrines Gospel Humour NT Commentaries OT Commentaries Tactical Life Date
August 2023
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