Matthew

Wow. I could not have prepared myself for the reading of the first gospel. Reading it in light of the entire Old Testament made it so much different than any other time that I have read it. So amazing. Reading the suffering of Jesus in chapter 27 was one of the most emotional things I have ever done. But I will just go through as best I can and hit on some things that stuck out to me. I think that will be the best way of doing this since most of you have heard the story of Jesus over and over again in your life. And honestly me summing up the whole thing wouldn't do it a lick of justice.

The most noticeable thing for me in the entire book was how hard Jesus's teachings are to understand. I could study those for years on end and still never get them. (But I still plan on doing just that.) They are just not things that are common sense type things. The wording in them just seemed to be so difficult to understand. Ones that were really hard for me to follow were 9:14-17; 10:34-39; 12:22-32; 22:1-14. Those were just some that I read and I was like "What the heck does that have to do with anything?" I'm sure more study and prayer will help though. And possibly seeing them in the other gospels will be beneficial too.

The next thing that I noticed was the amazing connections to the Old Testament that both Matthew and Jesus had. Ten times Matthew says "This was to fulfill what was written" and then quotes an Old Testament text (1:22; 2:6,15,17; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; 21:4; 27:9). And eighteen times Jesus quotes the Old Testament (4:4,7,10; 11:10; 13:14-15; 15:4,8-9; 19:5, 18-19; 21:13,16,42; 22:32,37,44; 23:39; 26:31; 27:46). What may mean even more is how he refers to the Old Testament characters. I have heard it said many times that the stories of Jonah and Noah may or may not be historically accurate. And most people say it doesn't really matter whether they are or not. Well I'd say that it matters because Jesus obviously believed them to be true. He spoke of Jonah (12:38-41; 16:4), Solomon (12:42), Daniel (24:15), and Noah (24:37-39) as if they were historical fact and it doesn't even seem debatable. My point is that Jesus believed the Old Testament account to be factual and He put an amazing amount of stock in it.

A theme that is picked up from the entire Old Testament is the theme of Yahweh using the weak or lowly to confound the strong or self-righteous (this is found most explicitly in Hannah's prayer in 1 Samuel 2). Jesus goes to the children, the tax collectors, the sick, the poor, the diseased, even the Gentiles (15:21-28). These are the people He chooses to reveal the kingdom to. Not the intellectual Pharisees or to the upper class. He again (like always) is using the foolish to confound the wise.

This next note was something that I did not expect, but it was very obvious from the reading. The theme of Ezekiel 11:19-20 and 36:26-27 is carried on here to the fullest extent. In both of those passages it is obvious that the work is done by Yahweh. He changes the hearts of stone to hearts of flesh so that the people may be obedient to His ways. That is continued in Matthew. The places where it is seen are 11:25-27; 13:11; 16:17; 19:11; 20:1-16 [esp. v 15]; 22:14. Notice that God gives understanding to whomever He chooses. I know that not very many people like this. Jesus knew that this was an offensive teaching (John 6:60-61). I am not trying to push an agenda. I am telling you what is on the pages in front of me and trying to relay God's Word to the people around me.

The last big thing to stick out to me was the offense for which Jesus was actually crucified. It is very plain in Matthew 26:65 that the charge against Jesus was blasphemy. He claimed that He was Yahweh. That is why the Pharisees hated Him. Not because He was more popular. Not because He taught true brotherhood. Not because He was a good teacher. Jesus Christ was killed because He believed Himself to be Yahweh. There is no way of getting around that and I know for a fact that this shows up way more in John's gospel.

This is all that I have for you. I know it is a bit different than the notes on the minor prophets and the other books of the Old Testament. I can't promise that I will stick to this style. I probably will at least in the gospels but we will see. As I have said before, this is meant to challenge you. Don't just sit back and think that everything is hunky dory and you've got it all figured out (or even that you've got it figured out that you don't need to have everything figured out). Open up your Bible and read it. This is what we base our entire Christian faith and all our beliefs about God on. It's important.

Soli Deo gloria