Day 284: Matthew 4-6

(The previous post covered the events of Jesus' life prior to the beginning of His Ministry.)

Matthew 4
¹ Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

(Jesus was led of the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. The first act of Jesus' Ministry was to be intentionally tempted by the devil so He would know which areas He could fall in.)

² And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he afterward hungered.

(Jesus fasted forty days and forty nights. It was clear that Jesus was a physical man: He was physically hungry. Exodus 34:28 stated Moses fasted for forty days and forty nights in the desert.)

³ And the tempter came and said unto him, If thou art the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.

(After the forty days, then the "tempter" went to Jesus…in Jesus' weakest state, physically. Notice, Satan used if/then statements. Satan has no understanding, no faith, no truth, and therefore he cannot speak truth - John 8:44 says, "...there is no truth in him."

If/then statements are qualified. Satan was tempting Jesus in the area of food, which shows us that Jesus likes to eat.)

⁴ But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

(Jesus responded to the devil by quoting scripture: Deuteronomy 8:3. The actual verse stated "everything that proceeded out of the mouth of God." The Greek word for "word" in this verse was rhema - "the powerful and revelatory word of God without precedent that brings salvation." Jesus continued the practice of fasting the rest of His time on earth.)

⁵ Then the devil taketh him into the holy city; and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

(The devil took Jesus to the holy city (Jerusalem) and set Him on the pinnacle (a pointed extremity, probably the top) of the temple. Notice, Jesus would have had to translate/transport to do this.)

⁶ and saith unto him, If thou art the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and, On their hands they shall bear thee up, Lest haply thou dash thy foot against a stone.

(The devil quoted scripture at Jesus: Psalm 91:11-12! Quoting scripture is a what and not always truth. Truth depends on the how/why. In this case, the devil intended to destroy Jesus with these words. The devil was questioning Jesus' ability to trust God.)

⁷ Jesus said unto him, Again it is written, Thou shalt not make trial of the Lord thy God.

(Jesus quoted scripture again: Deuteronomy 6:16. Jesus spent the rest of His time on earth trusting God completely.)

⁸ Again, the devil taketh him unto an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
⁹ and he said unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

(Again, Jesus translated/transported, this time to a high mountain. The devil told Jesus he would give Jesus the kingdoms of the world if Jesus worshipped him. The devil tempted Jesus with authority to rule.)

¹⁰ Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

(Jesus quoted scripture again: Deuteronomy 6:13. Jesus spent the rest of His time on earth serving others: facilitating the purpose and progress of others. Notice, Adam failed in the Garden by eating the forbidden fruit, not trusting in God, and not leading Eve well. Adam and Eve were sent from the Garden into the wilderness. Here, Jesus was in the wilderness and He handled the same three temptations Adam failed to handle. At the end of the Bible, Jesus will end up in a Garden with His Bride.)

¹¹ Then the devil leaveth him; and behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

(Angels ministered to Jesus.)

¹² Now when he heard that John was delivered up, he withdrew into Galilee;
¹³ and leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali:
¹⁴ that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,
¹⁵ The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, Toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles,
¹⁶ The people that sat in darkness Saw a great light, And to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, To them did light spring up.

(This was a fulfillment of Isaiah 9:1-2. If John the Baptist had remained, Jesus would have had to defer to him. John the Baptist is due a tremendous amount of Reward for facilitating Jesus' purpose and progress, and then being martyred.)

¹⁷ From that time began Jesus to preach, and to say, Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

(Jesus began preaching John's message: repentance because the kingdom of heaven was/is at hand. The kingdom of heaven is now. The Kingdom of God/Jesus is in the future for eternity.)

¹⁸ And walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brethren, Simon who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishers.
¹⁹ And he saith unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you fishers of men.

(Jesus saw Simon Peter and Andrew and told them to follow Him.)

²⁰ And they straightway left the nets, and followed him.

(They immediately followed Jesus.)

²¹ And going on from thence he saw two other brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
²² And they straightway left the boat and their father, and followed him.

(Jesus saw James and John and they immediately followed Jesus. When a Rabbi selected students, they dropped everything and followed him 24/7. Jesus called these students, who were teenagers, to follow Him. Peter would have been the oldest, around eighteen years old. John would have been the youngest, around thirteen years old. The rest would have been around fifteen years old. They would follow the Rabbi until they reached the age of thirty years old and became Rabbi's themselves.)

²³ And Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of disease and all manner of sickness among the people.
²⁴ And the report of him went forth into all Syria: and they brought unto him all that were sick, holden with divers diseases and torments, possessed with demons, and epileptic, and palsied; and he healed them.

(Jesus went all over Galilee teaching, preaching, and healing and His fame spread throughout all of Syria. Jesus' Ministry became well known because of miraculous healings.)

²⁵ And there followed him great multitudes from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judaea and from beyond the Jordan.

(Great multitudes of people followed Jesus because of these supernatural events.)




Matthew 5

(This chapter began what was referred to as "The Sermon on the Mount." This was Jesus' premier teaching.)

¹ And seeing the multitudes, he went up into the mountain: and when he had sat down, his disciples came unto him:
² and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,

(Jesus went to a mountain and taught His disciples and the multitudes principles.)

³ Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(The "poor in spirit" were those who recognized they were in need of God's Spirit to lead their lives.)

⁴ Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

("Meek" was humility: the ability to consider another perspective, including that you could be wrong.)

⁶ Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

("Pure in heart": the heart is the most fertile soil. Everything we say and do is planted in the heart and it will result in a crop, either profitable or unprofitable.)

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.

(Most people believe peace means a lack of conflict. However, peace meant "harmony." Those who were "peacemakers" were those who could intentionally facilitate harmony between people. This would happen primarily by helping people handle conflict well, not avoiding it.)

¹⁰ Blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(We are all in the kingdom of heaven, both good and bad. However, the "good" have Salvation. This kingdom of heaven is theirs, it belongs to them.)

¹¹ Blessed are ye when men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
¹² Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you.

(We ought to rejoice and be exceedingly glad when we are persecuted because we will have great Reward in heaven. Notice, verses 3 through 12 were stated in order of increasing maturity. It takes more maturity to do each subsequent verse.)

¹³ Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.

(Salt does not add to the taste, it masks the bitterness allowing more of the true flavor to be experienced. Believers ought to remove bitterness from the world.)

¹⁴ Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.
¹⁵ Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house.
¹⁶ Even so let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

(We should let others see our light so that they will glorify God. Other people glorifying God means they would think highly of God and ultimately give themselves to God.)

¹⁷ Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil.

(Jesus came to fulfill the Law: Jesus was able to keep all of the Law without sinning.)

¹⁸ For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished.
¹⁹ Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
²⁰ For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.

(Our Righteousness must exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees in order to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

**This usage of "kingdom of heaven" was referring to eternal paradise with God. The "righteousness" here was God's Righteousness through you via the Holy Spirit: grace.**)

²¹ Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
²² but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire.

(Those angry with a brother (believer) without cause were in danger of judgment. Jesus, as a Semikah Rabbi, widened Doctrine. Verse 21 stated the current Doctrine of the time. Verse 22 was the additional Doctrine.)

²³ If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee,
²⁴ leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
²⁵ Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art with him in the way; lest haply the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

(Agreeing with your adversary quickly helps your adversary run down quicker. If you hinder your adversary by fighting what they are saying or doing, you may give them more energy to go the wrong direction.)

²⁶ Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou have paid the last farthing.
²⁷ Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
²⁸ but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

(It was adultery when a man lusted after a woman in his heart. This meant he would be imagining sexual intercourse with her. Again, verse 27 was the current Doctrine of the time. Verse 28 was the widened Doctrine.)

²⁹ And if thy right eye causeth thee to stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy whole body be cast into hell.
³⁰ And if thy right hand causeth thee to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy whole body go into hell.
³¹ It was said also, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
³² but I say unto you, that every one that putteth away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, maketh her an adulteress: and whosoever shall marry her when she is put away committeth adultery.

(Profitability was the measure of community, including Marriage. It was better to cut off an unprofitable part of the "body" than to keep it and risk the unprofitable part making the whole body unprofitable. Verse 31 was the Doctrine of the time. Verse 32 was the widened Doctrine.

"Putting away" a believing wife (fornication would prove she was not a believer) was not recognized by God. God would still see the couple as married and sexual intercourse with another as adultery. This verse did not mean that the only reason for divorce among believers was adultery.

**Putting away and divorce were two different Doctrine.**)

³³ Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
³⁴ but I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of God;

(Swear (make an oath/vow/promise) not at all. Again, verse 33 was the current Doctrine of the time. Verses 34 through 37 were the widened Doctrine.)

³⁵ nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
³⁶ Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou canst not make one hair white or black.
³⁷ But let your speech be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: and whatsoever is more than these is of the evil one.

(Actions are what matters and that your say and do are the same. Jesus stated not to take an oath. What would Jesus say about today's wedding ceremonies and the vows? For instance, vowing to love your spouse always and forever sounds godly. However, the first time a person does not love their spouse, he has broken his vows...and perhaps let in the evil one.)

(Verses 38-48: Jesus was introducing how to intentionally get Reward.)

³⁸ Ye have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
³⁹ but I say unto you, resist not him that is evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
⁴⁰ And if any man would go to law with thee, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.
⁴¹ And whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.
⁴² Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

(Again, verse 38 was the current Doctrine of the time. Verses 39 through 42 were the widened Doctrine.)

⁴³ Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy:
⁴⁴ but I say unto you, love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you;

(Love your enemies. Love must not be an emotion or how could you intentionally love your enemies? Love is "giving a value to someone without expecting a value in return from the person you gave to." Again, verse 43 was the current Doctrine of the time. Verses 44 through 48 were the widened Doctrine.)

⁴⁵ that ye may be sons of your Father who is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust.
⁴⁶ For if ye love them that love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
⁴⁷ And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the Gentiles the same?
⁴⁸ Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.




Matthew 6

(The "Sermon on the Mount" continued. In this chapter, Jesus got more specific as to how to intentionally gain Reward.)

¹ Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to be seen of them: else ye have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

(Notice, the "reward" Jesus spoke of could not be Salvation. If it was, then "giving in front of others" would cause you to lose your Salvation. When Jesus spoke of "reward," He was speaking of spiritual value/treasure, which we will refer to as Reward.

Revelation 20:12-15 stated there will be two judgments. One will be a Salvation Judgment and will be done according to Righteousness (grace) with one book: the Book of Life. The other judgment will be a Reward Judgment and will be done according to Justice with books. This chapter from Matthew dealt exclusively with the actions that impact the Reward Judgment. Notice the emphasis of Justice throughout this chapter.)

² When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.

(The first example Jesus gave to intentionally gain Reward was to give to the poor. Giving to the poor was a right what. Jesus then explained the wrong how (in public) and wrong why (have glory from men). Jesus said the result was they get their Reward now. Notice, this was not a sin. It was the same as when Cain gave his offering to God in Genesis 4.)

³ But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
⁴ that thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee.

(Notice, this was the same right what: giving to the poor. However, Jesus gave the right how/why to give to the poor: do it in secret so you can be rewarded by God. This was the same as when Abel gave his offering to God in Genesis 4.)

⁵ And when ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.

(The next example Jesus gave to intentionally gain Reward was prayer. Right what: pray. Wrong how and wrong why: in public to be seen of men.)

⁶ But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee.

(Jesus gave the same right what (pray) with a right how/why: in secret to be rewarded by God. Notice, entering the inner chamber and shutting the door was analogous to being buried: being out of sight. Jesus' burial allowed us to gain Reward.)

⁷ And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
⁸ Be not therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
⁹ After this manner therefore pray ye. Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
¹⁰ Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

(Verses 9-13 recorded what was known as "The Lord’s Prayer." God's Will happened through believers. If God could make His Will happen without us, Jesus would not have said to pray for His "will be done." Notice the usage of pronouns in this prayer: "us, we." This seemed to be a corporate prayer or a prayer that believers ought to be in agreement about. A shorter version of this prayer was presented in Luke 11:2-4.)

¹⁴ For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
¹⁵ But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
¹⁶ Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.

(The final example Jesus gave to intentionally gain Reward in this chapter was fasting. Again, He gave a wrong how/why: with sad countenance so they could be seen of men.)

¹⁷ But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face;
¹⁸ that thou be not seen of men to fast, but of thy Father who is in secret: and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall recompense thee.

(Jesus stated the same right what (fasting) with a right how/why: in secret to be rewarded by God. Fasting was stated last because it included the first two examples: alms and prayer. When a person fasts, they ought to give up something (alms) and pray for the answer they want from God every time they think of what they gave up.)

(**The key to gaining Reward is to do these things for God and not for man. Doing these things so that no man can see you ensures that you are not doing these things for man. Since God is Just, when you do these things the right way (how) and for the right reason (why), God has to Reward you. If He did not, God would not be Just.**)

¹⁹ Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal:
²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
²¹ for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also.

(We can have Reward here or in heaven. Jesus said that if we have our Reward here it will be corrupted and could be stolen but if we have our Reward in heaven our Reward will be eternal. Where we store our treasure is where our heart is. Jesus encouraged us to gain Reward! People who tell you Reward is not important or that you shouldn't do thing to gain reward for yourself are contradicting the words of Jesus.)

²² The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
²³ But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is the darkness!
²⁴ No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

(Jesus used the principle of non-contradiction to show that you cannot serve God and mammon (money). We ought to serve God and mammon ought to serve us.)

²⁵ Therefore I say unto you, be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment?

(Jesus was saying to focus on the spiritual and not on appearance/physical.)

²⁶ Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value then they?
²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit unto the measure of his life?
²⁸ And why are ye anxious concerning raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
²⁹ yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
³⁰ But if God doth so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
³¹ Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
³² For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

(Jesus was very specific about not focusing on your clothing. What does this say about the fashion industry?)

³³ But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

(God knows what each of us needs so we ought to seek first the Kingdom of God (the First Command) and God will add what we need to us. Jesus used the principle of causality to show that seeking God first (cause) will lead to us getting what we need (effect). The Kingdom of God is the eternal kingdom.)

³⁴ Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

(This chapter was completely focused on Reward. Jesus encouraged us to get Reward. However, at the end of the chapter, Jesus emphasized the first step was to focus on God. Chapter 7 will conclude the "Sermon on the Mount.")

(This post covered Jesus' first act of His Ministry (being tempted of the devil) and the beginning of His teaching according to principles.)

Day 285