New Testament

Helpful words from R T France (paid link) on the visit of the Magi. The star's role changes as they leave Jerusalem for the final leg of their journey to Bethlehem:

“Whereas hitherto Matthew has described them as travelling to Jerusalem because they saw the rising of the star, not as actually led by it, his words here indicate that the star now first moved ahead of the magi and then stopped … in a position which indicated the location of the child. What sort of phenomenon gave this impression to expert observers as they travelled south from Jerusalem must be a matter of conjecture. They already knew from Herod that Bethlehem (a mere five or six miles from Jerusalem) was their destination, so that they did not need the star to tell them that; their extravagantly expressed joy is hard to explain unless the star somehow indicated the actual house rather than just the village as a whole. It seems, then, that the star’s movement gave them the final supernatural direction they needed to the specific house ‘where the child was’.” (Page 74)

God willing (* see James 4:15) I will be speaking on an "Unlocking the Bible" weekend at Otford Manor, the fine home of the fine Oak Hall Expeditions, next weekend (November 18-20).

Next Sunday falls as part of a week off for us, so we won't be at Kemsing or Woodlands churches.

The week after is 30th October. For a couple of years now, we've taken the opportunity that comes around four times a year (the fifth Sunday of the month) to have one joint service for both churches. In the main they've been happy celebrations, and the aim is always to worship the one Lord Jesus Christ, and to remind ourselves that the gospel which unites us is far stronger than any cultural, geographical, or ecclesiastical-taste differences we might have.

Yesterday, I quote from John Stott (paid link) on the Sermon on Matthew 5:38-48. It may seem impossible that we live in the way Jesus teaches.

Here is Stott again:

“It had been written of [Jesus] in the Old Testament Scripture: ‘I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I hid not my face from shame and spitting.’ And in the event first the Jewish police spat on him, blindfolded him and struck him in the face, and then the Roman soldiers followed suit. They crowned him with thorns, clothed him in the imperial purple, invested him with a sceptre of reed, jeered at him, ‘Hail, King of the Jews,’ knelt before him in mock homage, spat in his face and struck him with their hands. And Jesus, with the infinite dignity of self-control and love, held his peace. He demonstrated his total refusal to retaliate by allowing them to continue their cruel mockery until they had finished.” (page 106)

John Stott, in his magnificent commentary (paid link) on the Sermon on the Mount, makes these remarks on 5:38-48:

“Our duty to individuals who wrong us is not retaliation, but the acceptance of injustice without revenge or redress.” (page 105)

Jesus then gives 4 example of what this looks like in practice.

“Each introduces a person (in the context a person who is in some sense ‘evil’) who seeks to do us an injury, one by hitting us in the face, another by prosecuting us at law, a third by commandeering our service, and a fourth by begging money from us.” (page 106)

All 4 of those example feel very contemporary, with the possible exception of the third (conscription). But, look at the cultural situation in which Jesus said this, and:

The third example “could be applied today to any form of service in which we find ourselves conscripts rather than volunteers.” (page 106)

In summary:

“In each of the four situations, Jesus said, our Christian duty is so completely to forbear revenge that we even allow the ‘evil’ person to double the injury.” (page 106)

Whet your appetite for more? Why not join us this coming Sunday morning in Kemsing church at 9.30am.

Some sobering words from Chris Green (paid link) as he comments on 2 Timothy 4:10

Matthew 28:19 has a command ("go and make disciples"), followed by two participles: "baptising... , and teaching...".

Here's France (paid link) again:

The order in which these two participles occur differs from what has become common practice in subsequent Christian history, in that baptism is, in many Christian circles, administered only after a period of ‘teaching,’ to those who have already learned. It can become in such circles more a graduation ceremony than an initiation. If the order of Matthew’s participles is meant to be noticed, he is here presenting a different model whereby baptism is the point of enrollment into a process of learning which is never complete.

This coming Sunday, I am preaching on the closing verses of Matthew's gospel, Matthew 28:16-20.

Here's R T France (paid link): ... Enjoy!

The risen Jesus, vindicated over those who tried to destroy him, is now established as the universal sovereign, and his realm embraces not only the whole earth, which was to be the dominion of the ‘one like a son of man’ in Daniel’s vision, but heaven as well. At the beginning of the gospel, Satan offered Jesus sovereignty over the whole earth, but his offer was refused (4:8-10); now Jesus, going the way of obedience to his Father’s will even to the cross has received far more than Satan could offer. (Page 1113)

I've been re-reading John 16:12-15 again. To remind you, here's what it says:

I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Every Christian believer will, at times in their life, feel the weight of the fact they are a sinner. Perhaps they have just done something that proves to them, and they fear proves to others, that they are a failure before God and before others in the church.