WALK WITH ME!  

Week One (Jan 1-7) (Matt 1:1-4:11; Mark 1:1-13; Luke 1:1-4:13; John 1:1-14)

Thanks for looking in on my thoughts during our journey in the Harmony of the Gospels.  My hope is to share with you my thoughts and insights on the week's upcoming readings.  

The First Advent

Since we just shared Christmas many of the Nativity thoughts are fresh and recent.  Reading through the names may seem pointless but the ‘Word became flesh’ is a most staggering concept – the Divine created the material but did not co-mingle.  Only in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ did God become man – 100% God and 100% man.  Inexplicable to mortal minds and inconceivable to the angels of Heaven – yet only by such a miracle are we redeemed.  It should be noted that 5 women are included in the genealogy of Jesus.  Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Uriah’s wife (Bathsheba), and Mary.  Each of them is a story of God overcoming sin or scheme or prejudice or even murder to keep His promise for the Messiah.  God in every event is a Redeemer!

The Wise Men

The three gifts of the Magi deserve some thought – Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.  Gold was a precious metal and was a universal currency. Its value could very well have financed Joseph and Mary’s trip to Egypt. In the Tabernacle, gold was the emblem of deity – covering the Mercy Seat.  The gift of frankincense to the Christ child was prophetic of His willingness to become a sacrifice, wholly giving Himself up, symbolically as a burnt offering.  Myrrh symbolizes bitterness, suffering, and affliction. The baby Jesus would grow to suffer greatly as a man and would pay the ultimate price when He gave His life on the cross for all who would believe in Him.

Jesus Baptism

If John’s baptism was only for repentance, then it was not needed for Christ – He was without sin!  I will give three motives for this incredible event: 1) As John was a Levite this announcement takes on a very priestly sanction as the ‘Lamb of God’ is given by this descendant of Aaron.  2) Such humility of Jesus identifies Him with common men – not as a fellow sinner but as a mortal (flesh) man.  3) Maybe most importantly, as baptism is a testimony, the witness of the Father and the Spirit in Matt 3 is enormous!  The sending of the Father, the offering of the Son, the ministry of the Spirit – Salvation in the Trinity.

Temptation of Jesus

There is not room in a blog to explain the impeccability (could not sin) of Jesus.  However, I must share why He was tempted – to demonstrate two key concepts:  1) He was tempted as we are but without sin to identify with us and be the atonement for us! (Heb 2:18; 4:15). 2) Jesus came as the second Adam – to face what Adam faced but overcoming the temptations of Genesis 3.  We read in 1 John 3:16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.  Please see the chart below:

1 John 2         Gen 3     Matt 4

Lust of the flesh Good for food     Stones to bread

Lust of the eyes Delight to the eyes     Showed Him the kingdoms

Pride of life Make one wise     Leap from the pinnacle of the Temple

In each category of sin in 1 John the first Adam failed yielding death and the second Adam had victory giving us life!  As C.S. Lewis said, “One suggests evil wins; the other announces that evil has been forever wrecked.”  Praise God for ALL sin overcome by our Savior!

Check back here next week for more – Walk with me!

WHY READ A HARMONY OF THE GOSPELS?

“But when the Father sends the Advocate as My representative- that is, the Holy Spirit- 

He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”  John 14:26

If the Gospels were meant to be read as a single story – why wouldn’t God give them to us that way?

Each Gospel was written for a specific purpose and to a specific group of readers.  My focus will be the Gospel of Luke since he set out to compose an ‘orderly account’ of the life of Christ.  We need to pay attention to the twin purposes of the Gospels – each one has its story and context while all four together tell a single story – The Gospel of Jesus Christ.  In this reading, I am proposing that as Grace family we should read all four Gospels collectively (in harmony) to grasp the fuller picture of the life and ministry of Christ. Aside from the events surrounding His crucifixion, the Feeding of the 5000 is the only event recorded in all four Gospels. So, if we want a full picture of the life and ministry of Jesus, we need to consider the story through the lens of all four Gospel writers together.  

What is the value of a chronological life of Christ?

First of all, the time ordered approach gives us the developments and growth of the disciples with Jesus.  They grew as He revealed more!  Then, the people of Israel also had many chances to recognize and receive the Messiah – each turn was an offering of Heaven to embrace the Lord.  Each rejection deepened their hatred that led to an inevitable cruelty at the Cross of Calvary.  We have a wonderful picture of Jesus living out the theme for our new year 2023 – Walk with Me!  Jesus patiently and faithfully walked with the disciples – teaching and leading them toward faith and ministry.

How do we know which harmony gets it right?

No harmony is perfect since we were not there and did not compose a diary in real time – but Luke tries to collect the accounts and witnesses to compile an accurate rendering.  The Gospels are each then a reflection of the Holy Spirit within the life of the author – Matthew  and Luke giving the most parables while John gives none.  Mark is a quick book with lots of miracles and includes 8 unique parables.  John’s Gospel is built around the Jewish Feasts and gives us the most accurate accounting of passing time.  Since each is unique who can we trust to weave these reports together?  While it may not be perfect, A.T. Robertson’s work has been considered a solid, reliable harmony for almost a century – it is still my favorite.  I linked the Blue Letter Bible chart on your reading schedule - it is very good!

Why should I do this?

The greatest advantage I have found to studying the life of Christ by using a harmony of the Gospels, in addition to studying each Gospel individually, is that I am studying the life of Christ! I am taking a deep dive into Jesus, and by doing so, I am giving the Holy Spirit the opportunity to do exactly what Jesus had promised He would do. Teach me about the Son’s life. I am falling more and more in love with Jesus as He has revealed Himself to us in the Scriptures.  So walk with me this year as we walk with Jesus!

Pastor Mike