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Lecture 3: The Gospels of Matthew (continued) and Mark
“‘If you would pray,’ the old lady said, ‘Jesus would help you.’‘That’s right,’ The Misfit said. ‘Well then, why don’t you pray?’ she asked trembling with delight suddenly. ‘I don’t want no hep,’ he said. ‘I’m doing all right by myself.’”
Flannery O’Connor"A Good Man is Hard to Find.”
During this lecture you will:• Consider the shape of the kingdom of God in the gospel of Matthew.• Examine some key allusions that Matthew makes to the Old
Testament.• Identify distinctive elements and themes of the gospel of Mark.
Reading:D. A. Carson, D. Moo, L. Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament, Chapter 3G. Fee and D. Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by Book, pp. 277-285.
Listen to Lecture 3, and follow along in the notebook.
Living in the Kingdom of God: the Sermon on the Mount
What sets apart the people who are blessed in Matthew 5:3-12?
In what ways does Isaiah 61 inform the beatitudes in Matthew 5? What pronouncement does Jesus make by alluding to this passage?
“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn.” (Isa. 61:1-2)
Why do the beatitudes precede the rest of the Sermon on the Mount?
What division does Dr. McDonough see between “until everything is accomplished” and “until heaven and earth disappear” in verse 18? To what degreedo you think the Mosaic law is still binding on Christians?
The key hermeneutic, the key learning tool, is going to be: _____________________? _____________________?
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matt. 5:3-12)
How does Dr. McDonough suggest that Jesus’ words in 5:33-37 about oaths relate to the preceding verses? What is Jesus essentially calling for in this part of the Sermon on the Mount?
What imagery do these Old Testament prophets use to describe renewal? What imagery do modern Christians tend to use for the same events? What do these metaphors reveal about our thinking regarding renewal?
Jesus probes the heart and says,
you know, it is not enough simply to not murder other people. . . If you in your heart are
forever angry, desiring the death
of others, even though you’re
too timid or too worried about
repercussions to actually act on it, if you are,
in other words, constitutionally a murderer, who just lacks the ways and means or courage
to go through with it, in the end, you’re not going
to be in any better position vis-a-vis the kingdom
than someone who actually commits
murder.
“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” (Jer. 31:31-33)
“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.” (Ezek. 11:19-20)
How does one capitalize on the opportunity to have a new heart?
In Matt. 7:21, Jesus seems to promote a works-based salvation: “‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.’” What does this statement contribute to our understanding from the whole Bible of the roles of God’s grace and human actions?
End Times: The Apocalyptic Discourse
List three reasons for thinking that Matthew 24:1-51 speaks about both the events surrounding the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70 and the ultimate end of the age.
1.
2.
3.
“Many have stated that it is impossible to know whether or not we are living in the last days before the second coming
of Jesus Christ. However, below you will find dramatic proof that these are
the endtimes.”
“Proof this is the Endtime”
www.endtime.com
Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” (Matt. 24:1-2)
What precedents did Jesus have for mixing two different prophecies in the way he does in this chapter?
Describe the perspective of a first-century Jew on Old Testament prophecy.
Read Matthew 24. Which verses or ideas relate to the events of A.D. 70? Which relate to the ultimate end of the age?
A.D. 70 End of the Age BothThere’s a meaningful conection between the little end-of-the-ages throughout history and the ultimate end of the age when Jesus returns.
Model of the Herodian Temple. www.holylandphotos.org
Matt. 24:14 says, “‘this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.’”
a) How was this prophecy fulfilled by A.D. 70?
b) How will this prophecy be fulfilled by the end of the age?
Matt. 24:22 says, “‘If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.’”
Matt 24:13 says, “‘he who stands firm to the end will be saved.’”
a) How were these prophecies fulfilled by A.D. 70?
b) How will these prophecies be fulfilled by the end of the age?
Dawning of a new age: the Death of Jesus
How can the stories of Judas and Pilate in Matthew 27 be viewed as parallel accounts? Do both communicate the same point?
Antithetic Parallelism: A literary device employed frequently in the poetic portions of the Old Testament (usually the Psalms), in which something is stated positively in the first of a pair of lines and negatively in the second.Zondervan Dictionary of Bible and Theology Words
Dr. McDonough has described the gospel writers as balancing historical accuracy and careful composition. And yet in inserting the story in 27:50-54 into the known gospel account, Matthew may be flexible with the chronology of events. How does this conflict with a modern idea of accuracy? Why is flexibility like this in the Bible sometimes so difficult for us to swallow ourselves and to communicate to unbelievers?
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” (Matt. 27:50-54)
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’” So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound (seismovV, seismos), and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’” (Ezek. 37:4-14)
Mark knew the story of how the disciples got to know Jesus before he called them to follow him, and yet he presents the acquaintance and call as silmultaneous. Reflecting on your own conversion experience, can you relate to the feeling of suddenness that Mark conveys?
What three key themes of Mark are discussed here? List some examples of the development of each of those themes.
1.
2.
3.
Mighty Works in Chapter 5
Who was the Gerasene demoniac, and what separated him from the rest of his people?
However long the build-up may be in retrospect, it’s as if one day,
you’re on a fishing boat, and bam, to quote Emeril Live,
suddenly here’s the Savior asking you to drop your nets. You’re not
even entirely sure how it happened, but you’re up and gone. Jesus says, ‘Follow,’ and you
What similarities and differences exist between demon possession and mental illness? Is there a definite line separating these two afflictions?
What are some possible answers to the questions below, which are among those raised by story of the Gerasene demoniac?
1. When the demon-possessed man runs to Jesus, who speaks, the man or the demons?
2. Why does Mark use the precise military term “legion,” which refers to Roman troops?
3. Why do the demons go into the swine?
4. Does Jesus negotiate with demons?
“Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.” (Mark 9:17-18)
Uses of a[busson (abusson), “abyss”:
Gen. 1:2 “Now the earth was formless and
empty, darkness was over the
surface of the deep [a[bussou].”
Gen. 7:11 “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life . . . all the springs of the great deep [a[bussou] burst
forth.”
Psalm 42:7 “Deep [a[bussoV] calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls.”
Luke 8:31 “they begged him
repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.”
Mark spends quite a bit of space in his brief gospel giving a vivid account of the healing of the Gerasene demoniac. Reflecting on the distinctive themes of this gospel, why do you think this story is so important to Mark? What reaction does he expect to provoke?
When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!” For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you evil spirit!” (Mark 5:6-8)