The apostles worshiped Jesus

And when Jesus and Peter climbed into the boat, the wind died down.  Then those who were in the boat worshiped Jesus, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God” (Matthew 14:32-33).

   What started out as an outing for the purpose of getting some solitude and rest, as we learned from Mark 6:30-31, turned out to be yet another big adventure.  There was more preaching and teaching and healing by Jesus.  Then Jesus feed thousands of men, women, and children on a remote mountainside outside of Bethsaida, though He only had five loaves of bread and two fish.  Then when the disciples were in a boat in the middle of night, hampered by wind, Jesus appeared to them, walking on the water.

   The result: The apostles of Jesus worshiped Him.

   Worship is due only the Almighty God.  He is the creator of all things.  He is the lover of all people.  And Jesus is God, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, which is the reason we should worship Him.

   2000 years ago, Jesus came into the world to make it possible for people to be united with the true God.  Sin results in separation from God, which ultimately leads to spiritual death.  Jesus made unification possible by dying on a cross as the sacrificial atonement for our sins.  If you believe in Jesus as your Savior and Lord, you will have eternal life with the loving God for all eternity.

Hunter

Jesus is King of creation

Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself (John 6:15 NIV).

   After the miracle of feeding thousands of people with only five loaves of bread and two fish, Jesus went to another mountainside.  Was walking all alone to a remote mountainside, and then spending time there, dangerous?

   2,000 years ago in the wilderness outside of Bethsaida, the risk of danger from wildlife was probably high.  Poisonous snakes could have been a serious threat.  Worshiping at a church this past Labor Day weekend, a woman told of her recent work in Israel for several months.  She said it was around one hundred degrees every day.  Snakes, being cold blooded, thrive in that kind of climate.  Sometimes they come out at twilight to lay on a warm rock.

   Poisonous snakes are mentioned in the Bible, including in Numbers 21:4-9, where many Israelites were bit by venomous snakes.  There are other references to venomous snakes, such as in Isaiah 11:8 and 14:29.  Isaiah 30:6 states: “An oracle concerning the animals of the Negev: Through a land of hardship and distress, of lions and lionesses, of adders and darting snakes, the envoys carry their riches on donkey’s backs, their treasures on the humps of camels…” (NIV).

   This verse leads to the subject of lions.  In Nelson’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Bible Facts, there is a picture of a stone “relief,” a carving, of a lion and a dog.  The caption underneath: “Lion and dog fighting.  This relief was found in the fourteenth-century B.C. stratum at the tell of Beth-shean in Palestine.  Above, a dog and a lion rise up on their hind legs to fight….” (1)

   In that same book, the author of the chapter entitled “The Animals and Insects of Palestine” states: “Lions, found in almost half the books of the Bible, were a very real danger.  The biblical lion was smaller than the African lion and had a short curly mane, but was no less feared.” (2)

   Lions, tigers, and wolves were a threat.  A dear friend of mine did some teaching in northern Iraq once, and she said all three of those animals roam the mountain areas outside of some villages she visited.

   Going back to that relief, I speculate the dog attacking the lion was a wild dog.  Yet I wonder if some Israelites had domesticated dogs for a safety measure, including a walk in a remote area.  Did they?  In Job 30:1, Job speaks of domesticated dogs, translated “sheep dogs” in the NIV, and translated “the dogs of my flock” in the NRSV.

   With or without dogs, I speculate that when Israelites traveled into such remote areas, they normally traveled in pairs or small groups.  When thousands of Israelites followed Jesus up the mountainside outside of Bethsaida, there was no safety concern because it was such a large group of people.

   Yet when Jesus was alone, at night, on another remote mountainside, there was a risk.  Jesus was fully human, thus he may have needed to watch His step.  Jesus was also fully divine, thus wild animals would have been subordinate to Him.  Though Jesus slipped away from his fellow Israelites so they would not make Him king of Israel at that time, alone on that mountainside, Jesus was still King of creation.

   And Jesus was still King of heaven, as He revealed to Pilate: “Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world.  If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews.  But now my kingdom is from another place’” (John 18:36).

   And upon His return, Jesus will be the king of the world: “The LORD will be king over the whole earth…” (Zechariah 14:9).

   Jesus is the King who created the Garden of Eden where creation lived in harmony.  When Jesus returns perfect harmony will spring forth once again.  “The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox" (Isaiah 11:7).

   Jesus is a loving King, whose desire is goodness for everyone.

Hunter Irvine

(1) J.I. Packer, Merrill C. Tenney, and William White, Jr., eds., 

Nelson’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Bible Facts, 

(rev. ed. of The Bible Almanac; Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995), 217.

(2) Ibid., 220.

Looking to heaven

Matthew 14: 15-21

   Gaining a fact from the book of John, we know that Jesus walked from the shore of the lake, called the Sea of Galilee, to a mountain, and then walked up the mountain to a “mountainside” area.  Though we do not know how far He walked, we know from a detail given by Matthew, Mark, and Luke that the place was “remote.”  And we know people, thousands of men, women, and children, followed Him.

   I find it interesting that all but Luke mention there was grass there.  Mark specifically states the grass was green.  There in such an arid region, green grass was probably rare.

   And then, Jesus fed numerous people by supernaturally multiplying five loaves of bread and two small fish.  It was a miracle.

   Before performing the miracle to feed many people, Jesus looked to heaven and gave thanks.

   Because of all Jesus has done for us, we can look to heaven and give thanks.

   Once I read a piece by a famous theologian, and the man made the statement that heaven is not mentioned many times in the Bible.  In my reading of Scripture in the following weeks, I started noticing the word “heaven” frequently.  The word “heaven” was ‘jumping out at me.’  And I became aware that in many of the parables, Jesus began the parable stating: “The kingdom of heaven is like….”

   We followers of Jesus need to emulate Jesus, including keeping a daily focus on heaven, and including giving daily thanks to Jesus, the One who loves us.

Hunter Irvine

Jesus persevered with His mission

Matthew 14: 13-14   When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place.  Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns.  When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick (NIV).

   It is a rare day when I write a second time about the same passage.  Yet in my last piece I focused on what the people did.  Here I want to elaborate on what Jesus did.

   This action took place before Jesus fed thousands of people with only five loaves of bread and two fish, which was an event recorded by all four “gospel” writers.  (And Jesus would do such a miracle a second time.)

   2000 years ago, the writing resources of papyri, or velum, was limited.  Writing had to be “economical,” thus authors were more select on the details they gave.  Since some of the “gospel” authors gave additional details, we get a fuller picture of this event by reading all four accounts.

   Bethsaida was the solitary place Jesus sailed to, which we learn from Luke.  We also learn from Mark and Luke that when Jesus traveled on the lake (called the Sea of Galilee) seeking solitude, the twelve apostles joined Him.  Jesus expressed to the Twelve His desire for them to rest: “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31).

   I find it interesting Matthew does not give this detail.  I think Matthew was trying to emphasize that Jesus wanted to mourn the death of John the Baptist when simply stating that He sought solitude.

   But the plans of Jesus were interrupted.  Probably over ten thousand people pursued Jesus.  Mark gives the detail that many “ran” (6:33), and many even arrived at the landing point before Jesus and the disciples.

   Even though the objective to get some rest, and to provide some rest for His apostles, was interrupted, Jesus persevered with His mission.

   Having engaged in a detailed study of Matthew ever since October of 2020, I have pondered and written about the mission of Jesus which Matthew clearly stated twice:

“Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people” (Matthew 4:23).

“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness” (Matthew 9:35).

   In spite of the interruption, there on the shore of a lake, His mission continued.

   As recorded by Matthew: “When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick” (14:14).

   As recorded by Mark: “…So he began teaching them many things” (6:34).

   As recorded by the doctor Luke: “…[Jesus] welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing” (9:11).

   Note that John skips what happened when the boat docked, and proceeds to Jesus walking up a mountainside to a remote area in that region.

   And we know of His ultimate perseverance as Jesus persevered with His ultimate mission of being the atonement for sins.

   Learning of the perseverance of Jesus, be encouraged to keep doing, or to start doing, what Jesus has commanded us to do: Preach the Gospel; baptize believers; and teach people about the revelations of God, teachings, which when applied, will bring healing for a person’s heart.

Hunter Irvine

Keep following Jesus

Matthew 14: 13-14   When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place.  Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns.  When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick (NIV).

   Please close your eyes for a short bit and attempt to imagine people running and walking swiftly along the shore of a big lake to get to Jesus.

   The reason Jesus set off in a boat on a lake to a remote location: Having been told about the murder of John the Baptist by the king, Jesus sought solitude.

   Before this, Jesus had been doing much ministry work.  Recorded in the 13th chapter of Matthew, Jesus gave some short sermons involving parables.  The first was given from a boat to a group of people who stood on the shore.  Then His disciples got a big follow up explanation after the sermon.  Then Jesus told more parables to people, and then there were more explanations to His disciples.

   These parables involved telling about heaven.  “The kingdom of heaven is like….” is the beginning of parables recorded in Matthew 13:24, and 13:31, and 13:33, and 13:44, and 13:45, and 13:47.  Heaven is the focus of these parables of Jesus.

   Yet h-ll is also revealed, as Jesus speaks of the “fiery furnace” in Matthew 13:42 and 13:49-50.

   Then after much preaching using parables, Jesus went to His hometown and taught in the synagogue there, but He “offended” many people (verse 57).  Then came the big tragedy of the murder of John the Baptist.

   Though Jesus had revealed the subject of h-ll, and though the political climate was spooky after the murder of John the Baptist, crowds of people ran after Jesus in the countryside.  In the midst of strife, thousands of people chased after Jesus!

   And Jesus, rather than taking off in His boat and going somewhere else to get the solitude He was seeking, went ashore and healed more sick people.  Why?  Scripture states Jesus had “compassion” on them.

   This passage speaks to me today after I have had such an “up and down” time this year.  I have had some big blessings, and I have had some disappointments.  Being unemployed, there have been days when I was optimistic that a great job was going to be given to me at any moment, and then there have been even more days when I considered I may never get a ministry job.

   This passage, in the context of all that went on in Chapter 13, has a message for us: Keep focused on Jesus during up and down circumstances.  And keep doing what He did in Chapter 13: Preach heaven with a passion, with your lips and your lives.  Keep focused on Jesus, whatever the nature of the political situation where you live.  And even though physical death continues daily in this world, keep trusting Jesus, the One who overcame death.

May you have a great day!

Hunter

Scripture Love Blog

God the Son

John 8: 48-59

   Followers of Jesus have been instructed by Jesus to baptize people “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” as recorded in Matthew 28:19.  The reason for baptism being done in the name of three persons is that God is what Christian theologians call “Triune.”  God is three Persons, yet One Being.  This nature of our awesome God is above my comprehension.

   Though the word Trinity is sometimes used by ministers and theologians, the word Trinity is not mentioned in the Bible.  If you want to know where Scripture reveals the fact God is three Persons, yet One Being, you need to look at specific Bible verses which reveal the nature of each Person.  There are resources to guide you to such verses.  Yet regarding Jesus, this passage of John 8:48-59 is a key passage revealing the divinity of Jesus Christ.

   Sadly the Pharisees were often offended by Jesus because He threatened their power and position.  Yet this particular discussion is between Jesus and some Israelites, a discussion which starts in John 8:31.  The wild thing about this discussion is the fact Jesus directly tells them they do not belong to God.

For example:

   “He who belongs to God hears what God says.  The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God” (John 8:47).

   The Israelites go from questioning Jesus to accusing Jesus of being “a Samaritan and demon-possessed” (John 8:48).

   Yet the climax of the discussion is the statement by Jesus that He is God:

   “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” (John 8:58).

   Now God had revealed Himself to Moses at the time He spoke to Moses from the burning bush: “God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.  This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14).

   Thus by saying, “I am,” Jesus was claiming to be God the Son.  And that is why the discussion ended with some Israelites picking up stones with the intent to stone Jesus, as recorded in John 8:59.  They did not believe Him.

   Jesus stated who He is and did many miracles, yet many of those people did not believe Him.  And just as a number of those people did not believe Him, there have been a number of people who disagreed with this claim of Jesus, which is recorded in Scripture, throughout “church history.”  Even today there are “church” leaders, theologians, and people who argue that Jesus is not God.

   In 325 A.D., there was a huge meeting of church leaders from many countries, a meeting now called the First Council of Nicaea.  The reason for the big meeting: There was a division among Christians over whether or not Jesus is God, fully God from all eternity.  Those church leaders, via a big vote, affirmed the divinity of Jesus.  They also composed a creed, now called the Nicene Creed, a brief core of which may have already been composed prior to that meeting.  (I personally think the core of the creed had been composed prior to the First Council.  And note it was later expanded.)

   A young church leader named Athanasius was at that Council.  Yet the reason he is remembered all these years later is because he became a champion for advocating the divinity of Christ.  You see, in the wake of the big church meeting, there was still a big fight over many years concerning the decision of the Council and of the creed they had solidified.  A number of people refuted the Council’s decision and rebelled against the decision and the creed.

   The theologian Christopher Hall clearly stated two points Athanasius gave to support the fact that Jesus is God, the second person of the Trinity.

   Here I focus on the first point: Athanasius said only God can save people. (1)

   This is logical to me, since saving people required the forgiveness of sins, and in order to die for the sins of another person, the substitute could have no sins of his own.  Only God is sinless.  And only God, being transcendent, could die as the substitute for countless people.

   Jesus, during a Passover meal, after a lamb was sacrificed at twilight, did something new, which is recorded in Matthew 26:26-28.

   “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’

   Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you.  This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’”

   Jesus forgave the sins of people on the cross, shedding His blood, that very day!  (Note that a new Jewish day always started at sundown!)

   Recently we have been examining Scripture from Matthew which reveals that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.  The mission of the Christ in this world was to forgive sins, thus the Christ, the Messiah, had to be God.

   If you are not a follower of Jesus, may you know this day that Jesus loves you, and that Jesus died on a cross for the forgiveness of sins of anyone, including you.  He was the atoning sacrifice for the consequence of sins, which is spiritual death.  Then Jesus was resurrected.  If you believe in Jesus as your Savior and Lord, you will be forgiven of your sins, and you will have eternal life with Jesus in heaven!  Jesus loves you!

Hunter Irvine

(1) Christopher A. Hall, Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers

     (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1998), 60.

One greater than Jonah and Solomon

Matthew 12: 38-42

   Jesus said that one greater than Jonah is here.  Then Jesus said one greater than Solomon is here.  Recall that soon before this, Jesus said that one greater than the temple is here.  All three of these statements served an important purpose of revealing that Jesus is the Anointed One.

   Now I often view Jonah as the disobedient prophet who ran from his duty, and then who later harbored anger and bitterness against the people of Nineveh.

   Jonah may have had a better reputation with the Israelites 2,000 years ago.  They may have seen Jonah more in a positive manner as the prophet who was rescued by God, and as the prophet who made an epic comeback.

   Regarding King Solomon, he did such evil, as is stated in I Kings 11:6, that he was responsible for the split of Israel, as is stated in I Kings 11:11.  That split resulted in the slow demise of Israel.  Yet even today you hear more about Solomon’s splendor and less about his evil.  The wise Solomon may have still been admired by a number of Israelites 2,000 years ago for his golden era rule in Israel.

   The bottom line is I do not think Jesus was working to gain people’s respect and admiration based on a comparison with a famous prophet and a famous king.  Rather the key point Jesus was making was the fact that He is the Christ.  Christ is the Greek word for “Anointed One,” and Messiah is the Hebrew word for “Anointed One.”  As I wrote in the piece “Greater than the temple,” priests, prophets, and kings were anointed with olive oil.  The Anointed One would fulfill all three offices in a sacred manner, being the Eternal High Priest, the Prophet, and the King of kings.

   Jesus is the Eternal High Priest, who is greater than the temple.

                                           (See Hebrews 8:1-2)

   Jesus is the Prophet, who is greater than Jonah the prophet.

                                           (See Acts 3:22)

   Jesus is the King of kings, who is greater than King Solomon.

                                           (See Revelation 19:16)

   Jesus is the Christ who came to save us from our sins!

                                           (See Matthew 1:17 and 1:21)

Hunter Irvine