Matthew 20-22

• Master, God is the owner. He agrees to give one denarius for labourers (20:2)
• He promised 'whatever is right I will give you' (v4)
• Ends up giving the labourers who worked only 1 hour one denarius also. The first labourers show discontent. (v12) They are not content with what they are given. They did not realise it is them who agreed to whatever the master was going to give in v2. They failed to acknowledge who was the one going to give. (v13)
• Jesus foretells his death third time (v17-19)
• Mother of sons of Zebedee asking something she does not know what she is asking for: sitting on the right hand side of Jesus. Jesus explains he has come to serve, not to rule, so he cannot decide, but God the Father is the one who decides (v20-28)

• Jesus furious because of people turning the temple, a house of prayer to a market place, den of robbers (21:12-13)
• Everyone was amazed with Jesus performing miracles.
• Why did Jesus curse the tree just because it did not have fruit as and when he needed food? Does that have a meaning on our lives? (v18-19)
• Have faith and it will be done. Ask in prayer and you will receive, if you have faith (v21-22)
• Chief priests tried to set a trap for Jesus (v23), but Jesus out smarted them by getting them to answer his question first (v24). From the thoughts in v25-26, it appears the priests know they are stuffed, but they choose not to humble themselves and say they are wrong. In the end they do not get what they want (v27)
• Jesus sees their heart and addresses the issue, saying prostitutes and tax collectors who repent will get into heaven before the priests, who says they will go (v30b), but dont end up doing the will of God. Those that say without the heart will not get there.
  
• Parable of the tenants (v33-46)

• Parable of the Wedding Feast (22:1-14)
• God has chosen but they refuse to answer his call - Jews?
• They treat the prophets badly or ignored them
• God destroys the cities
• What is the selection criteria (v9)? It does not seem to show what the criteria is.
  
• What is evident though, that not everyone seems to make it into heaven. The man 'without the wedding garment' was refused entry (v11-14). What does the wedding garment symbolise? Was the fact that the servants went out (v10) meant that they were invited through an invitation of the gospel. The man without the garment did not accept such invitation of the gospel?
  
• Paying taxes to Caesar (v15-22) - they wanted to trap him by getting Jesus to say stuff the Roman government, but he did not do that. Pay Caesar what is his and pay God what belongs to God!
• The greatest commandment:

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two cammandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.

-- Matthew 22:37-40

• Jesus declares that he is there before David, so Christ is not son of David. (v41-46)
  

Isaiah 40-44

• Is this section prophesising the coming of Christafter much punishment of Jerusalem?
• "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God (40:3),
• Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!" (v9)
• Shepherd (v11)
• but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (v31)

• God protects (40:13-15)
• God provides (v17) - is this still prophesising Jesus providing the "living water"?

• He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; (42:2) Is this the reason why Jesus tells people not to make huge noise after performing miracles?
• Hear, you deaf, and look, you blind, that you may see! (v18) Listen if you have ears
• God says there will be many who will be stubborn (v20)

You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.
11 I, I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior.
12 I declared and saved and proclaimed, when there was no strange god among you; and you are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and I am God.
13 Also henceforth I am he; there is none who can deliver from my hand; I work, and who can turn it back?"

-- Isaiah 43:10-13

• I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins. (v25)

Psalms 21-23

• Submitting your life to him (21:4)
• His name is glorified through you (v5)
• Don't stray (v7)
• The Lord will take care of the enemies (v9-11)

• Times where God seems so far (22:1-2)
• Still acknowledges Him and reminds that we are to trust Him and He delivers (v3-5)
• Feeling of vulnerability (v12-13)
• But we should all turn to the Lord, the one who has ultimate rule over the earth (27-31)

Psalms 23
1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Genesis 28-31

• Jacob gets blessed directly by God Himself,assures that the blessing handed down through Isaac is true. (28:13-15)
• One-tenth offering (v20-22)

• Jacob finds the guy who Isaac told him to find in 28:5 (29:4)
• So warm hearted the relatives of Jacob (v11-14)
• Proposed to marry Rachel, the more beautiful one in form and appearance (v17) in v18. V21 he takes wife. Notice he hasn't married but calls her give me my wife already (v21)
• Wedding feast (v22)
• Dad gives the wrong daughter to Jacob (v23)
• Were they both so drunk that neither knew the mistake? Was dad intentional? We find out Isaac was deceived in v25
• V26 , excuse or true? Why didn't he explain this tradition to Isaac when he proposed 7years ago?

• Gives Rachel to him ultimately (v27)
• God is just, now that both are Isaac's wives, he should not have unequal treatments. (v30-31)
• V32-35: each son with a different name to tell the feelings of the mother at different times! Notice the change from complaints to thanksgiving attitude. Has Leah grown spiritually? Or has she just been treated better by the husband because Rachel bore no children and Leah ultimately got better treatment as a result?

• Just envy, no love. Envy brought unreasonableness (30:1-2)
• To secure her position as wife she was prepared to let husband have sex with the servant? As if sharing your husband with your sister was not enough! (v3)
• And husband actually did it! (v4)
• Look at her naming policies, they are all envious ones. (v6,8)
• Now Leah is also bringing her slave on! (v9- 13)
• For whatever Leah has, Rachel needs to also have, even mandrakes? Can't they 23 content for once? (v14)
• Love as an exchange for mandrakes. What pathetic view is this? Buy-back husband for the night regime. (v15)
• How does God put up with this relationship and still bless them! Is this all to honour His promise of Isaac having a properous nation? (v17-21)
• Laban had deal to give Jacob some livestock but Jacob was being sly about this plan to take all of Laban's stronger stock. (v28-43)
• Laban was selfish too and drove away all the livestock that Jacob was supposed to get.

• Why is he blaming Laban for not looking after him when he was being cheeky? (31:2,5)

Week 6 & 7

Sorry for being absence for about two weeks.

不過仍然要感謝神, 讓我在考試期間依然可以按365godsword的schedule讀聖經 (雖然.. 我時時都比預定的schedule慢了一兩天...)

沒有blog的這段期間, 我用簿寫下了我讀聖經時的感受. 但上載需時, 請原諒我暫時不貼新post!

Fellow 365 teammates, 'add oil' hehe...

Week 8

Mon 16 Jun 2008	Genesis 28-31
Tue 17 Jun 2008	Judges 12-16
Wed 18 Jun 2008	Psalms 21-23
Thu 19 Jun 2008	Job 15-16
Fri 20 Jun 2008	Isaiah 40-44
Sat 21 Jun 2008	Matthew 20-22
Sun 22 Jun 2008	Romans 15-16

Romans 13-14

• We cannot ignore the authorities governing our day and age even if we have become a Christian (13:1-2)
• We must also live an accountable life during our stay here under the authorities as everything is under God's rule. There is no fear if you have not done something wrong (v3-7)
• We are reminded the source of not doing wrong is love. If we love, it could not be wrong or hurt anyone. (v9-10)

• Evangelising tip: Don't have heated arguments, just open your invitation to them (14:1- 2) and don't make fusses about little differences (v3)