My 2-Cents Worth

ALL LIVES MATTER!!!!

By: tkbrown

As a citizen of this great nation, I have sat quietly watching as racism has tugged from this side, then tugged from that side, then another . . . and another! I watched the Watts Riots of California being televised across the nation. I watched the peaceful protests led by Dr. Martin Luther King. I watched as civil unrest divided the nation between those supporting the violence and rioting and those who did not — which is happening again as I write! I watched as segregation was addressed and desegregation was enacted. I watched decades pass when black Americans and white Americans were mostly united against the onslaught of other nations and the wars — both hot and cold — were fought. I watched and listened to both sides. Having parents, one of whom was a Democrat and the other who was a Republican, whose differing viewpoints taught me that we do not have to agree to get along — we can sometimes agree to disagree!

I watched all of the above, then I experienced my writing — a poem — as it was accepted and lauded by classmates and faculty to the extent that it was published in my High School Newsletter my senior year. Then I experienced the disappointment of silence after I presented another of my poems, entitled “They’re People Too.” I had seen firsthand the difference in the way even young black children were treated versus young white children. I hoped my poem could make a difference. It was silently rejected, and I was never asked about my writing again.

I have watched as ‘drive-by shootings’ killed many black Americans due to poverty, violence, gangs, drugs, etc. Drugs were infiltrating the American scene, and where drugs go–violence follows. I watched as immigrants from other countries flooded our great land to escape tyranny and persecution. Then, I watched as that persecution began being quietly turned on white Americans as a means of expressing disgust regarding past treatment.

Ironically, by the time this happened, most white Americans had accepted people of color and of other nationalities. Yes, those remained who fought integration, but most accepted and embraced it. Silently, I hoped and prayed the acceptance would overcome, and I did as much as I could to encourage that acceptance in all areas of my life.

Then, I watched as the racist attitudes infiltrated those toward whom it had been directed. Now, the shootings were enacted or instigated by black Americans against white Americans. I watched in horror, as that reverse racism was directed–even at me who had fought for black Americans all my life. Reverse discrimination against me became the norm as the national turmoil steadily increased.

Now, the riots have begun again. Mostly black people attempting to destroy white America. One even said outright, he looks forward to the day when intermarriage and interracial relationships do away with truly white people and interracial becomes the norm. How much more racist can one be? Yet, in the news, most of what we see and hear discusses only the racism of white against black. Few have the courage to discuss the reverse, the black against white that is destroying our nation–and reporters seem to thrive on making that destruction happen.

When are we going to realize: It is not JUST ‘Black Lives Matter’, ALL LIVES MATTER, but black Americans are being allowed to say only people of color matter. By phrasing it as such, they make it appear that they support the Latinos, the Asians, the Native Americans, etc. who are also people of color. Then we hear again, repeatedly, “BLACK LIVES MATTER!” This excludes all others, but nobody pays attention to tht fact. There is racism in America, but this time, it is the black against the white — and all others — that is creating the unrest in America. I have sat quietly watching as it has chipped away at the fiber of our interdependence, weakening even the strength of this country against foes who are other countries on the planet called Earth. When white Americans who ARE white supremacists began responding in kind, black America cried wolf every time until the situation became what it is today — even though black America had instigated that response.

When are we going to stop destroying America and begin stressing that ALL LIVES MATTER — not just BLACK LIVES? That is reverse racism to the hilt. When will reporters begin to call a spade a spade, and expose it for what it is? No one will say what is really happening, because any white person who speaks out about — and black people too — will be persecuted into oblivion. Well, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH? I am speaking out about it. In the Holy Bible, the book of Philippians is about racism and the fact that it is not supposed to be allowed among those who profess to be Christians. Well, I have to ask Black America — where is your justification for the reverse racism that is destroying America today? You profess to believe Christ is the Son of God, You profess to accept persons of other colors — then why do you persecute white people and persons of other origin — even those who support you? I am sorry, but according to the book of Philippians, your behavior is not Christ-like! Get down off your pedestals! If those statues you are destroying were of Black People, the whole nation would have been razed by now!

It is time that ALL RACISM STOPS, and America begins to heal. It is time that all colors — including white — and black — accept each other. I, and all white people, have the right to Freedom of Speech too, but you and your reporter friends try to deprive us of that right. Well, I am reclaiming my right to Freedom of Speech! BLACK people, it is time to STOP! Dr. Martin Luther King would NOT approve of what you are doing today, and his daughter recently said as much publicly. Peaceful protests are protected by the United States Constitution, but violence which destroys both life and property is NOT protected by the United States Constitution because it tears America down! The Constitution DOES NOT protect YOU when you riot!!!! So, stop it or accept the consequences!!!!

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I believe this song, “A Beautiful Life,” written by William M Golden, posted from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt-v5D2Ozko best expresses my feelings about what needs to happen now. Please follow the link and listen, “Like” my post (if you do like it), and Comment below to tell me what you think. I look forward to hearing from you!

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Jesus Begins His Ministry (Part 2)

Scripture is from the Holy Bible — New King James Version (NKJV)

Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Sermon on the Mount

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Lesson Scripture — Matthew 5:1-20

1 — “And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.”

2 — “Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:”

3 — “‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.'”

4 — “‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.'”

5 — “‘Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.'”

6 — “‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.'”

7 — “‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.'”

8 — “‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.'”

9 — “‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.'”

10 — “‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.'”

11 — “‘Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.'”

12 — “‘Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.'”

13 — “‘You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.'”

14 — “‘You are the light of the world, A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.'”

15 — “‘Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.'”

16 — “‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.'”

17 — “‘Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.'”

18 — “‘For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot of one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.'”

19 — “‘Whosoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.'”

20 — “‘For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.'”

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Apostle Selection Completed

Lesson Scripture — Luke 6:12-15

12 — “Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray and continued all night in prayer to God.”

13 — “And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:”

14 — “Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,”

15 — “Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot, Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.”

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Luke’s Description of the Sermon on the Mount

Lesson Scripture — Luke 6:17-23

17 — “And He came down with them and stood on the level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,”

18 — “as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.”

19 — “And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.”

20 — “Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: ‘Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.'”

21 — “‘Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.'”

22 — “‘Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.'”

23 — “‘Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.'”

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Prophecy Related to Matthew 5:1-20

v5 — Psalm 37:11 — “But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”

v6 — Isaiah 55:1 — “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

v6 — Isaiah 65:13, 14

13 —Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, My servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; behold, My servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; behold, My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed;'”

14 — “‘behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, but you shall cry for sorrow of heart, and wail for grief of spirit.'”

v7 — Psalm 41:1 — “Blessed is he who considers the poor; the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.”

v8 — Psalm 15:1-5

1 —Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?”

2 —He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart;”

3 —He who does not backbite with his tongue, nor does evil to his neighbor, nor does he take up a reproach against his friend.”

4 —In whose eyes a vile person is despised, but he honors those who fear the Lord; He who swears to his own hurt and does not change;”

5 —He who does not put out his money at usury, nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.”

v8 — Psalm 24:3-5

3 —Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or, who may stand in His holy place?”

4 —He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.”

5 —He shall receive blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.”

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Prophecy Related to Luke 6:17-23

v21 — Isaiah 55:1 — “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the wters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

v21 — Isaiah 65:13

13 — Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, My servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; behold, My servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; behold, My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed;'”

14 — “‘behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, but you shall cry for sorrow of heart, and wail for grief of spirit.'”

v21 — Isaiah 61:2, 3

2 —To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,”

3 — to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

v21 — Psalm 126:5, 6

5 —Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.”

6 —He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.”

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New Testament Scriptures Related to Matthew 5:1-20

v1 — Mark 3:13 — “And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him.”

v2 — Matthew 7:28, 29

28 — “And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching,”

29 — “for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”

v3 — Luke 6:20-23 — (See above.)

v4 — Revelation 21:4 — “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

v5 — Romans 4:13 — “For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”

v6 — Luke 1:53 — “He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty.”

v8 — I Corinthians 13:12 — “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.”

v10 — I Peter 3:14-16

14 — “But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. ‘And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled (Isaiah 8:12).'”

15 — “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who askes you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

16 — “having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.”

v11 — Luke 6:22 (See above.)

v12 — I Peter 4:12-14

12 — “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;”

13 — “but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed you may also be glad–with exceeding joy.”

14 — “If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.”

v12 — Acts 7:52

52 — “Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers,”

53 —who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it (Exodus 20:1).'”

v13 — Luke 14:34 — “Salt is good, but if the salt lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?'”

v14 — John 8:12 — “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness but have the light of life.'”

v15 — Luke 8:16 — “No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.'”

v16 — I Peter 2:11, 12

11 — “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.”

12 — “having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

v16 — John 15:8 — “By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so, you will be my disciples.'”

v17, 20 — Romans 10:3, 4

3 — “For they, being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.”

4 — “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

v18 — Luke 16:17 — “‘And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.'”

v19 — James 2:10 — “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.”

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New Testament Scriptures Related to Luke 6:17-23

v17 — Mark 3:7, 8

7 — “But Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea. And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea”

8 — “and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan, and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they hard how many things He was doing, came to Him.”

v19 — Matthew 9:21 — “For she said to herself, ‘If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.'”

v19, 20 — Matthew 11:4-6

4 — “Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and tell John the things which you hear and see.'”

5 — “‘The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them,'”

6 — “‘and blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.'”

v20 — Matthew 5:3-12 — (See above.)

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

I apologize for the absence of a post last week. Sometimes things happen and prevent me from completing a post. I do hope you will forgive me when that happens. Thank You!

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As we begin studying the Sermon on the Mount, I would like to note, I have included Jesus’ selection of His additional six apostles as depicted in Luke Chapter 6. Luke’s presentation shows this was immediately followed by the Sermon on the Mount.

The Sermon on the Mount covers much territory and lays the foundation for Christ’s ministry here on earth. For this reason, I will divide it into several parts in order to not overwhelm you, the reader, with too much information to be digested at one time. It is important to understand how Christ’s words tie-in to other Scripture in both the Old and the New Testament.

Christ’s ministry took place under the Old Covenant until His death, we will see the vail protecting the Ark of the Covenant rent into two pieces–top-to-bottom. On the day of Pentecost, Christ’s church was established with form. Prior to this time, His kingdom is always referenced as being ‘at hand.’ After the day of Pentecost, His kingdom is always noted ‘in the present form.’ This means His kingdom was publicly established on the Day of Pentecost — when His church was established with the baptizing of three thousand souls.

Hopefully, this information will help you to ‘rightly divide the word of truth’ as we study the course of Christ’s ministry. However, do your own studying to verify whatever I mention in my notes. Do not ever take another person’s word for what the Bible says. Your salvation depends upon this one factor. The scriptures I present above are directly from the Holy Bible (NKJV). When I make a comment in my notes, verify it in the scriptures. Events noted regarding the vail and Christ’s death will be reviewed as we come to them. Study for yourself and prove all that I put forth in my writing.

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In Matthew Chapter 5, Jesus’ teachings show the underdog as more likely to go to heaven than the upper crust. The underdog’s tendency is to present as more meek and merciful and to have faith that studying God’s Word and applying it to daily life leads to purer hearts and righteousness.

Jesus alerts those in his hearing of other people’s tendency to persecute and revile those who follow God–just as they persecuted the prophets. Christ suffered during His life here on earth, and many persecute Him now and deride His teachings and life as untrue. Jesus assures you, when someone persecutes you because you are patterning your life after Him and His teachings, they have their reward already.

These trials are God’s method of refining our Christian hearts and skimming off the impurities each time suffering occurs and is met with a Christ-like attitude. Just as gold must be molten, allowing impurities to rise to the top to be skimmed off, we as Christians must also be refined. We must grow in Christ, increasing in our ability to forgive and move on. This is how maturity in Christ is attained–one trial at a time. This is also how our lives become a living example amidst a sea of worldly souls. Our lives become the light–beacon, if you will–leading others to Christ. This is why we are the salt of the earth.

Never be ashamed to stand up for what is right and be different. This is what Christianity promotes. This, and our faith, is what makes us Christlike–awaiting a home with Him in heaven.

There are those who, even today, say Jesus came to destroy the Old Covenant. He assured the crowd and His apostles this was not so. He came to fulfill the Old Covenant, and until all is fulfilled and heaven and earth pass away, not one iota of the law is destroyed. Anyone who breaks the commandments set forth by the law and by Jesus will never be great in heaven. In order to see heaven, Jesus said our righteousness must be greater than that of the scribes and the Pharisees.

Moving on to Luke’s presentation of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, we see that just prior to this sermon, Jesus chose six more disciples to be a part of His twelve apostles. All followers of Christ were, and still are, known as His disciples. However, only thirteen have been called apostles of Christ. When Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, he revealed his enslavement to Satan, with whom he will spend eternity. Saul of Tarsus was subsequently appointed as the replacement apostle. We know Saul as Paul. He was one of the most grateful, for his sins prior to conversion had been great, and he was the first to admit this. Thus, he worked hard to teach others about Christ and His salvation.

Luke words his portrayal of the Sermon on the Mount a bit different, as we have seen in previous lessons, but it means much the same. He shows that those who have little are more likely to seek God through Christ and to be blessed. Those who have much are not interested in God’s blessings.

In the next lesson, we will continue reviewing the Sermon on the Mount. This is where the parables begin. Each teaches a valuable lesson for living the Christian life. Come back and join us in the feast God’s Word and Christ’s teachings provide, leading to the ultimate reward of a home with Them in heaven. Have a Blessed Week in Christ’s love!

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Lesson One -- Scripture: Zacharias to Have Son . . . 
Lesson Two -- Scripture: Jesus Birth Foretold . . . 
Lesson Three -- Scripture: Zacharias' Son, John, is Born . . . 
Lesson Four -- Scripture: Jesus is Born . . . 
Lesson Five -- Scripture: And Jesus Grew . . . 
Lesson Six -- Scripture: John Begins His Ministry . . . 
Lesson Seven -- Scripture: Jesus is Introduced to the World . . . 
Lesson Eight -- Scripture: Jesus' Ancestral Lineage
Lesson Nine -- Scripture: Jesus is Tempted By Satan
Lesson Ten -- Scripture: Jesus Begins His Ministry (Part 1)
Lesson Eleven -- Scripture: Jesus Begins His Ministry (Part 2)

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Photo above by: kieutruongphoto @pixabay.com.

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Jesus Begins His Ministry (Part 1)

Scripture is from the Holy Bible — New King James Version (NKJV)

Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Disciple Selection Begins

Lesson Scripture — Matthew 4:12-25

12 — “Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee.”

13 — “And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali,”

14 — “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet saying:”

15 — “‘The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles.'”

16 — “‘The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.'”

17 — “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'”

18 — “And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.”

19 — “Then He said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.'”

20 — “They immediately left their nets and followed Him.”

21 — “Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them,”

22 — “and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed Him.”

23 — “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.”

24 — “Then His fame went throughout all Syria, and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics, and He healed them.”

25 — “Great multitudes followed Him–from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.”

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Prophecy

v15 — Isaiah 9:1, 2

1 — “Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon who is distressed, as when at first He lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward more heavily oppressed her, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in Galilee of the Gentiles.”

2 — “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v12 — John 4:43 — “Now after the two days He departed from there and went to Galilee.”

v16 — Luke 2:32 — “A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.”

v17 — Mark 1:14, 15 — (See below.)

v17 — Matthew 3:2 — “and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'”

v18 — Mark 1:16-20 — (See below.)

v18 — John 1:40-42 — (See below.)

v23 — Matthew 24:14 — “‘And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.'”

v23 — Mark 1:34 — (See below.)

v24 — Luke 4:40 — “When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.”

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Lesson Scripture — Mark 1:14-20

14 — “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,”

15 — “and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.'”

16 — “And as He walked by t he Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.”

17 — “Then Jesus said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.'”

18 — “They immediately left their nets and followed Him.”

19 — “When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets.”

20 — “And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and went after Him.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v14 — Matthew 4:12 — (See above.)

v14 — Matthew 4:23 — (See above.”

v15 — Galatians 4:4 — “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,”

v15 — Matthew 3:2 — “and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'”

v15 — Matthew 4:14 — (See above.)

v16 -- Luke 5:2-11
2 -- "and saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets."
3 -- "Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's and asked him to put out a little from the land, And He sat down and taught the multitude from the boat."
4 -- "When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, 'Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.'"
5 -- "But Simon answered and said to Him, 'Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing, nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net.'"
6 -- "And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking."
7 -- "So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink."
8 -- "When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, 'Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!'"
9 -- "For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken."
10 -- "and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, 'Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men."
11 -- "So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him."

v17 — Matthew 13:47, 48

47 — “‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind,'”

48 — “‘which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels but threw the bad away.'”

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Lesson Scripture — John 1:35-51

35 — “Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples.”

36 — “And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, ‘Behold the Lamb of God!'”

37 — “The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.”

38 — “Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, ‘What do you seek?’ They said to Him, ‘Rabbi’ (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), ‘where are you staying?'”

39 — “He said to them, ‘Come and see.’ They came and saw where He was staying and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).”

40 — “One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.”

41 — “He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated, the Christ).”

42 — “And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, ‘You are Simon the Son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas’ (which is translated, A Stone).”

43 — “The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, ‘Follow Me.'”

44 — “Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.”

45 — “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote–Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.'”

46 — “And Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.'”

47 — “Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, ‘Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!'”

48 — “Nathanael said to Him, ‘How do You know me?’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.‘”

49 — “Nathanael answered and said to him, ‘Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!'”

50 — “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.'”

51 — “And He said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Sun of Man.'”

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Prophecy

v47 — Psalm 32:2 — “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”

v47 — Psalm 73:1 — “Truly God is good to Israel, to such as are pure in heart.”

v51 — Genesis 28:12 — “Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven, and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v36 — John 1:29 — “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!'”

v37 — Matthew 4:20, 22 — (See above.)

v40 — Matthew 4:18 — (See above.)

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

Here in these four sets of Lesson Scriptures–from Matthew, Mark, (Luke as it is connected to Mark’s depiction via the Related New Testament Scriptures), and John–we are shown how Jesus began selecting his disciples as he set about preaching, “Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” These four presentations vary slightly as one might expect the testimony of four witnesses in a court of law to vary. Human nature is such that each of the four saw slightly different things taking place. Luke presents his in slightly more detail as an adjunct to Mark’s. In these four presentations, Jesus selects the brothers Andrew and Simon Peter, the brothers James and John — sons of Zebedee and partners with Simon Peter in the fishing industry, Philip, and Nathanael–both of Bethsaida.

Simon Peter doubted the likelihood of a successful cast after toiling all night and catching nothing but agreed to cast anyway at Jesus’ request, only to bring up nets so full of fish the nets were breaking. They summoned partners to assist in saving the catch. Then Simon Peter, ashamed at his lack of faith, tells Jesus to depart from his sinful self. Jesus assured Simon Peter that he would need only catch men in the future. In the Related New Testament Scriptures, we see Matthew13:47 and 48 connected to Mark 1:17 as an example of Jesus–in later sermons–reminding Simon of this catch.

Almost instantaneously, as Jesus begins to preach, people are drawn to Him. His command of the Word, the authority with which He casts out demons who readily obey Him, and the compassion evidenced in His ready willingness to heal the sick spoke to their hearts, and the multitudes flocked to Him wherever He went.

The beginning of Jesus’ ministry will be divided into several lessons due to the extensive and varied aspects of His interactions. Next week, we will look at the Sermon on the Mount as Jesus lays the groundwork for all His teachings while living here on earth.

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Lesson One -- Scripture: Zacharias to Have Son . . . 
Lesson Two -- Scripture: Jesus' Birth Foretold . . . 
Lesson Three -- Scripture: Zacharias' Son, John, is Born . . . 
Lesson Four -- Scripture: Jesus is Born . . . 
Lesson Five -- Scripture: And Jesus Grew . . .
Lesson Six -- Scripture: John Begins His Ministry . . . 
Lesson Seven -- Scripture: Jesus is Introduced to the World . . . 
Lesson Eight -- Scripture: Jesus' Ancestral Lineage
Lesson Nine -- Scripture: Jesus is Tempted By Satan
Lesson Ten -- Jesus Begins His Ministry (Part I)

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Photo above by: kieutruongphoto @pixabay.com.

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Jesus is Tempted by Satan

Scripture is from the Holy Bible — New King James Version (NKJV)

Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Matthew 4:1-11

1 — “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.”

2 — “And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.”

3 — “Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.'”

4 — “But He answered and said, ‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'”

5 — “Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple.”

6 — “and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you.’ and ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'”

7 — “Jesus said to him, ‘It is written again, You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'”

8 — “Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.”

9 — “And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.'”

10 — “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only you shall serve.'”

11 — “Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.”

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Prophecy

v4 — Deuteronomy 8:3 — “So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.”

v6 — Psalm 91:11, 12

11 — “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”

12 — “In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

v7 — Deuteronomy 6:16 — “You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v11 — James 4:7 — “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

v11 — Hebrews 1:14 — “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister to those who will inherit salvation?”

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Mark 1:11-13

11 — “Then a voice came from heaven, ‘You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'”

12 — “Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.”

13 — “And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with wild beasts, and the angels ministered to Him.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v11 — Matthew 3:17 — “And suddenly a voice came from heaven saying, ‘This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'”

v11 — Matthew 12:17, 18

17 — “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying;”

18 — “‘Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased! I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.'”

v12 — Matthew 4:1-11 (See above.)

v12 — Matthew 4:10, 11 (See above.)

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Luke 4:1-14

1 — “Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.”

2 — “being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days, He ate nothing, and afterword, when they had ended, He was hungry.”

3 — “And the devil said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.'”

4 — “But Jesus answered him saying, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'”

5 — “Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment in time.”

6 — “And the devil said to Him, ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.'”

7 — “‘Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.'”

8 — “And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.'”

9 — “Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.'”

10 — “‘For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you.'”

11 — “‘and, ‘in their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'”

12 — “And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'”

13 — “Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.”

14 — “Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.”

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Prophecy

v4 — Deuteronomy 8:3 — “So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.”

v8 — Deuteronomy 6:13 — “You shall fear the Lord your God and serve Him and shall take oaths in His name.”

Deuteronomy 10:20 — “You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name.”

v9 — Matthew 4:5-7 (See above.)

v10 — Psalm 91:11 — “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”

v11 — Psalm 91:12 — “In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

v12 — Deuteronomy 6:16 — “You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.”

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Related New Testament Scriptures

v1 — Matthew 4:1-11 (See above.)

v13 — Hebrews 4:15 — “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

v14 — John 4:43 — “Now after the two days He departed from there and went to Galilee.”

v14 — Acts 10:37 — “. . . that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached.”

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

Here, I have presented the Scriptures which portray Jesus’ forty days and forty nights of fasting and prayer in the wilderness when Satan tempted Him. These Scriptures are found in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. While there may be slight differences in the wording of each account of the event, these are no more than would be found if three witnesses in a court of law presented accounts of a specific incident. This is important in the fact that all three testimonials also coordinate with Old Testament prophecy related to these Scriptures and with related Scriptures in the New Testament. Thus, we have ‘rightly divided the Word of Truth’ with regard to this event in Jesus’ life.

Forty days and forty nights is a long time to be without food, but this was done to show that Jesus’ Spirit form and the angels ministering to Jesus was sufficient to satisfy His human needs. This is another example of how God takes care of those who do His will. Jesus was tempted of Satan so we can know He understands the temptations we endure at Satan’s hand.

As our High Priest, Jesus’ understanding of our weaknesses regarding temptation is important. Had He never come to Earth in human form, He could never have truly understood our weakness or the desire to give in when Satan tempts us. God realized this was a faltering point in His righteous understanding of these weaknesses in man. Thus, Jesus understanding of the tendency to give in to temptations gives Him the ability to ‘argue our case’ with God and mediate with Him on our behalf. Hebrews 4:15 tells us this was God’s plan. We can look at the Scripture presented in Romans 3:21-26 to see how this all fits together.

Romans 3:21-26

21 — “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,”

22 — “even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;”

23 — “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

24 — “being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,”

25 — “whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,”

26 — “to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

This well-known passage from Romans chapter 3 ties in to Satan’s temptation of Jesus and of man in his struggles to overcome temptation. God’s righteousness puts Him in a position of not fully understanding these trials. Through the centuries, the Jewish Law as given to Moses on Mount Sinai allowed Jesus’ forbearance and atonement (propitiation) of their sins to go back and cover all those sins that God had passed over before Christ was born. Now, God is shown to “be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).

Jesus is now ready to begin His ministry on Earth. In our next lesson, we will see Jesus begin to select His disciples as he begins to preach and to teach the multitudes. Join us as we look closely at each account of this process as presented in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

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Lesson One -- Scripture: Zacharias to Have Son . . . 
Lesson Two -- Scripture: Jesus' Birth Foretold . . . 
Lesson Three -- Scripture: Zacharias' Son, John, is Born . . . 
Lesson Four -- Scripture: Jesus is Born . . . 
Lesson Five -- Scripture: And Jesus Grew . . .
Lesson Six -- Scripture: John Begins His Ministry . . . 
Lesson Seven -- Scripture: Jesus is Introduced to the World . . . 
Lesson Eight -- Scripture: Jesus' Ancestral Lineage
Lesson Nine -- Scripture: Jesus is Tempted By Satan

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Photo above by: kieutruongphoto @pixabay.com.

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Today in History: 24 May

1944: First Telegraphic Message Sent

Samuel B Morse, on 24 May 1944, sent the first telegram from the U.S. Capitol to his fellow researcher–Alfred Vail–at a railroad station in Baltimore, Maryland. The historic event, witnessed by members of Congress, messaged — ‘What hath God wrought.’ The words were taken from the Bible.

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Source:

Eds. Today in History. (24 May 2020). “Today in History: May 24.” Microsoft News @msn.com. (24 May 2020). https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/today-in-history-may-24/ss-BB1430Te?ocid=msedgdhp#image=2.

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Image above: from “Today in History.” Copyright: Authenticated News/Getty Images.

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Jesus’ Ancestral Lineage

Scripture is from the Holy Bible–New King James Version (NKJV)

Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Matthew 1:1-17

 1 -- "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham."
 2 -- "Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers."
 3 -- "Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram."
 4 -- "Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nashon, and Nashon begot Salmon."
 5 -- "Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse,"
 6 -- "and Jesse begot David the king.
         David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah."
 7 -- "Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa,"
 8 -- "Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah."
 9 -- "Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah."
10 -- "Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah."
11 -- "Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon."
12 -- "And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel."
13 -- "Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor."
14 -- "Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud."
15 -- "Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob."
16 -- "And Jacob begot Joseph,  the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ."
17 -- "So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations."

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth . . .

Here, in the first chapter of Matthew, we are presented the ancestral lineage of Joseph–husband of Mary, the mother of Jesus. This lineage is inclusive back to Abraham in three sets of fourteen generations. The first set presents the line from Abraham to king David. The second set includes those generations from king David to the capture by Babylon, and the third set presents those from Babylon to Jesus.

It is interesting that there are fourteen generations between each division. When we look at Mary’s ancestry (below), we see that the lineage from Adam to Abraham is twenty-one generations–another multiple of seven. This first phase is the pre-Jewish lineage when God dealt with and communicated directly to the heads of family and with prophets. He chose each of these for specific reasons. This process was continued to some degree during the fourteen generations spanning Abraham to king David. He also chose specific leaders–such as Moses and Aaron, then Joshua, followed by the judges–to replay details of the law to His people and to lead them through certain trials.

When king David was a young lad, God’s people had become disgruntled with the ‘leader’ format. They had been clamoring for a king. Finally, God granted their request, and king Saul was appointed the first king. David was chosen as Saul’s successor. Thus, we complete the first fourteen generations and move into the second set when God communicated to His people through the kings and the prophets. This form of leadership was dismantled when they were carried away to Babylon.

The final set of fourteen generations, which takes us to the birth of Jesus, covers the first Jewish dispersion during which about five million Jews were deported to Babylon and then began to spread over Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. There are those who believe some were also able to inhabit the Americas, intermarrying with the natives in the western hemisphere. This final phase before Christ’s birth leads to the end of the Old Covenant and the beginning of the New Covenant. During this time, God’s people were under the direction of kings and other leaders of each country in which they resided. Each phase is governed very differently from the phase before and after. This shows us when the Old Covenant ended, a new phase began. The Old Covenant is no longer in effect.

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Galatians 3:22-26

22 -- "But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe."
23 -- "But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed."
24 -- "Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith."
25 -- "But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor."
26 -- "For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus."

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Notes on Scripture, cont.: by tkbrown

The original King James Version of the Holy Bible used the word ‘schoolmaster’ where the word ‘tutor’ is used in the New King James Version. God has done everything, including the divisions of time and leadership, to lead us to the New Covenant. At the instant Christ died on the cross, the veil was rent twain (torn into two pieces–top to bottom) between the outer tabernacle and the most holy of holies where the Ark of the Covenant was kept (and where God resided in the tabernacle). At that instant, the Old Covenant officially ended, and the New Covenant began.

We notice in Mary’s ancestral lineage, below, it goes all the way back to Adam. This too is done with purpose, for we see “God begot Adam” (v. 38). Thus, we are told, God is the Father of mankind. When He created Adam, He created mankind. We also see, in Luke 3:23, that Joseph–husband of Mary–was ‘the supposed father’ of Jesus. In actuality, he was the ‘step-father’ or ‘legal father’ of Jesus. God was Jesus’ father.

Under the Old Covenant, God dealt almost completely with the men. Very few women are exemplified. We are introduced to Eve, Ruth, Esther, Deborah and a few others, but mostly men are introduced. In the New Covenant, women are exemplified in much larger number, and women determine their own salvation through obedience of Christ’s commands. No individual can obey Christ’s commands for another person. That decision is strictly the choice of each.

That each set of generations presents with a different form of leadership is no accicent. The fact that they, and the period from Adam to Abraham, are all divisible by seven alludes to God’s use of numbers throughout the Bible. When a specific day was given in the Old Covenant to observe a specific feast or sacrifice, it was to be done on ‘that day,’ not another day of His people’s choosing. The same holds true under the New Covenant. There are those who say the Scriptures contradict themselves. If one takes the time to ‘rightly divide the Word’ there is no contradiction.

I hope these two genealogies now present as much more interesting and with much more meaning for application today. I pray that these lessons are beginning to clarify the meaning of ‘rightly dividing the Word of Truth.’ The next lesson will cover Satan’s temptation of Christ in the Wilderness. I invite you back for another morsel of nutrition from God’s Word.

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Luke 3:23-38

23 -- "Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli,"
24 -- "the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Janna, the son of Joseph,"
25 -- "the son of Mattathiah, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai,"
26 -- "the son of Maath, the son of Mattathiah, the son of Semei, the son of Joseph, the son of Judah,"
27 -- "the son of Joannas, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri,"
28 -- "the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmodam, the son of Er,"
29 -- "the son of Jose, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,"
30 -- "the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Johan, the son of Eliakim,"
31 -- "the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattathah, the son of Nathan, the son of David,"
32 -- "the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,"
33 -- "the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,"
34 -- "the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
35 -- "the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah"
36 -- "the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,"
37 -- "the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Cainan,"
38 -- "the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God."

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Lesson One -- Scripture:  Zacharias to have Son . . .
Lesson Two -- Scripture:  Jesus' Birth Foretold . . .
Lesson Three -- Scripture:  Zacharias' son, John, is born . . .
Lesson Four -- Scripture:  Jesus Is Born . . .
Lesson Five -- Scripture:  And Jesus Grew . . .
Lesson Six -- Scripture:  John Begins His Ministry . . . 
Lesson Seven -- Scripture:  Jesus is Introduced to the World . . .
Lesson Eight -- Scripture:  Jesus' Ancestral Lineage

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John Begins His Ministry

old antique bible as an open book with sunlight bursting from the pages

Scripture is from the Holy Bible — New King James Version (NKJV)

Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Luke 1:76-80

76 — “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,”

77 — “To give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins,”

78 — “Through the tender mercy of our God, with which the Dayspring from on high has visited us;”

79 — “To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

80 — “So, the child grew and became strong in spirit and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.”

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Isaiah 40:3-5

3 — “The voice of one crying in the wilderness; prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

4 — “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth.”

5 — “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

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John prepares the way for Jesus

Matthew 3:1-12

1 — “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,”

2 — “and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'”

3 — “For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight.'”

4 — “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.”

5 — “Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him”

6 — “and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.”

7 — “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?'”

8 — “‘Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance,'”

9 — “‘and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.'”

10 — “‘and even now the ax is laid in the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

11 — “‘I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.'”

12 — “‘His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.'”

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Luke 3:1-20

1 — “Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene,”

2 — “while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.”

3 — “And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,”

4 — “as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness; prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight.'”

5 — “‘Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth;‘”

6 — “‘And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.‘”

7 — “Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized of him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?'”

8 — “‘Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father, for I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.'”

9 — “‘And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree which does not bear fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.'”

10 — “So, the people asked him, saying, ‘What shall we do then?'”

11 — “He answered and said to them, ‘He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.'”

12 — “Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?'”

13 — “And he said to them, ‘Collect no more than what is appointed for you'”

14 — “Likewise the soldiers asked him saying, ‘And what shall we do?’ So, he said to them, ‘Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.'”

15 — “Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not,”

16 — “John answered, saying to all, ‘I indeed baptize you with water, but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose, He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.'”

17 — “‘ His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.'”

18 — “And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.”

19 — “But Herod the tetrarch being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done,”

20 — “also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison.”

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John 1:15-28

15 — “John bore witness of Him and cried out saying, ‘This was He of whom I said, He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.'”

16 — “‘and of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.'”

17 — “‘For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.'”

18 — “‘No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father. He has declared Him.'”

19 — “Now this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?'”

20 — “He confessed, ‘I am not the Christ.'”

21 — “And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ And he answered, ‘No.'”

22 — “Then they said to him, ‘Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?'”

23 — “He said: ‘I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.'”

24 — “Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees.”

25 — “And they asked him, saying, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?'”

26 — “John answered them, saying, ‘I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know.'”

27 — “‘It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.'”

28 — “These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan where John was baptizing.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Mark 1:1-8

1 — “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.”

2 — “As it is written in the Prophets: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before your face, who will prepare Your way before You.‘”

3 — “‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight.'”

4 — “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.”

5 — “Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.”

6 — “Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.”

7 — “And he preached, saying, ‘There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.'”

8 — “‘I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.'”

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

Above, in Luke Chapter 1:76-80, we see the instructions John received regarding his purpose in life. In accordance with Isaiah’s prophecy, he ‘grew and became strong in spirit and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel,’ at which time he did prepare the way of the Lord. He cleared the path for Jesus Christ. In this lesson, we see that he showed Israel his was a baptism ‘unto repentance,’ but Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit to actually do the cleansing of their sins and to grant salvation to each who believes He is the Son of God and abides by the commands He has given.

John grew from childhood in the deserts and came from the wilderness to Judea and the Jordanian region to reveal the imminent presentation of God’s Son. He was clothed with camel hair cinched at the waist with a belt, and his diet consisted of locusts and wild honey. His was truly a voice out of the wilderness, and he laid the way straight for the Lord. He taught that his baptism would never carry them to heaven. For that, they would require the baptism of Christ. During Christ’s ministry, we will see how we obtain that baptism. John’s message was: the One to come after him was preferred before him because He was before him.

We are shown that the Sadducees and Pharisees came to John and tried to ‘trip him up’ with questions. When they did this, John called them ‘A brood of Vipers’ and rebuked them–telling them they should bear fruit worthy of repentance if they were to receive the salvation of Jesus Christ. When they asked him to explain who he was, John told them–clearly–he was not Christ, he was not Elijah, and he was not the prophet. “So, who are you?” they asked. He responded, “‘I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness; make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.'” This explained to the priests and the Levites that the Christ had not yet been revealed, and John did not come to offer salvation, but to ‘prepare the way for the Lord.’

In the next lesson, we see that John introduced Jesus to Israel when He came to be baptized by John. We will also view Christ’s genealogy from Adam to Joseph and Mary and try to understand why that lineage is important to Christians. Then, we will see that–prior to the beginning of His ministry, Jesus went into the wilderness where he fasted and prayed for forty days. During this time, he was tempted of Satan in order that He could understand the temptations we as humans experience. This was one of the primary reasons for God sending His Son to earth–that He might understand the struggles of man in abiding by God’s law. This would aid Christ in His service as mediator between man and God. When man goes to God to ask forgiveness, Jesus understands the struggles that person has faced because He was human at one time. Thus, He is able to make intercession with God on our behalf.

As mentioned earlier, Christ offers salvation to all who believe He is the Son of God and abide in his teachings. With ‘winnowing fan’ in hand, Christ will ‘thoroughly clean the threshing floor,’ gather his wheat into the barn, and burn the chaff with ‘unquenchable fire.’

John taught them things they must change about their behavior if they were to attain the salvation offered by Christ Jesus. Repentance requires a change in behavior. John instructed them to share what they had. If one had two tunics and knew someone in need of one, they were to give to the one in need. The same with food. If one had more food than he or she would need, they should give part to someone who did not have enough. The tax collectors (who were known for taxing more than the amount assessed and thereby becoming wealthy off their own dishonesty) were to tax no more than that which was owed. The soldiers were told they must intimidate no one, and they were not to falsely accuse anyone. These are all lessons we can apply in our own lives today–especially now, with COVID-19 rampant about the world. In His ministry, Christ taught how we must live if we want Him to give us an eternal home in heaven.

Come back, join us in learning the ‘Christian way of living.’

~~~~~~~~~~

Week One -- Scripture: Zacharias to have Son . . . 
Week Two -- Scripture: Jesus' Birth Foretold . . . 
Week Three -- Scripture: Zacharias' son, John, is born . . .
Week Four -- Scripture: Jesus is Born . . .
Week Five -- Scripture: And Jesus Grew . . . 
Week Six -- Scripture: John Begins His Ministry . . .

~~~~~~~~~~

Jesus is Born

old antique bible as an open book with sunlight bursting from the pages
Scripture is from the Holy Bible–New King James Version (NKJV)
Notes on Scripture (below) by tkbrown

Matthew 1:21-25

21 — “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

22 — “So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet saying:”

23 — “‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us.'”

24 — “Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,”

25 — “and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Luke 2:1-40

1 — “And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.”

2 — “This census first toop place while Quirinius was governing Syria.”

3 — “So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.”

4 — “Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,”

5 — “to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.”

6 — “So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.”

7 — “And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”

8 — “Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.”

9 — :And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.”

10 — “Then the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.'”

11 — “‘For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'”

12 — “‘And this will be a sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger,'”

13 — “‘and suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying;'”

14 — “‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!'”

15 — “So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven that the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.'”

16 — “And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the Babe lying in a manger.”

17 — “Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.”

18 — “And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”

19 — “But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.”

20 — “Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.”

21 — “And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.”

22 — “Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord.”

23 — “(as it is written in the law of the Lord, ‘Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord’),”

24 — “and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, ‘A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.'”

25 — “And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, awaiting for the Consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit was upon Him.”

26 — “And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.”

27 — “So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law,”

28 — “he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:”

29 — “‘Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word;'”

30 — “‘for my eyes have seen Your salvation'”

31 — “‘which you have prepared before the face of all peoples.'”

32 — “‘a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.'”

33 — “And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.”

34 — “Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, ‘Behold this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against'”

35 — “‘(yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.'”

36 — “Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity,”

37 — “and t his woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.”

38 — “And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.”

39 — “So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth.”

40 — “And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.”

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Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

As we see in Luke 2:22, after the days of Mary’s purification according to the law of Moses, they took Jesus to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord. Now, according to the Law of Moses as seen in Leviticus 2:1-4 (below), Mary and Joseph would not have left Bethlehem for Jerusalem for a minimum of forty-one days after Jesus’ birth. This says the Wise Men — or the Three Kings — could not have seen Jesus until after Mary’s purification. Therefore, the Epiphany (January 6) is not possible. Joseph and Mary were a devout Jewish couple, and they would have followed Jewish Law guidelines for her purification to the nth degree.

Leviticus 2:1-8

1 — “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,”

2 — “‘Speak to the children of Israel, saying: If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.'”

3 — “‘And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.'”

4 — “‘She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.'”

5 — “‘But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.'”

6 — “‘When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.'”

7 — “‘Then he shall offer it before the Lord and make atonement for her. And she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who has borne a male or a female.'”

8 — “‘And if she is not able to bring a lamb, then she may bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons–one as a burnt offering and the other as a sin offering. So, the priest shall make atonement for her, and she will be clean.'”

~~~~~~~~~~

Next week, we will look at Jesus’ life from His birth to adulthood.

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Source:

Abbot, Shari. (5 January 2020). “Did the Wise Men Arrive 12 Days After Jesus’ Birth? Or Was it Much Later?” Reasons for Hope — Jesus. (4 April 2020). https://reasonsforhopejesus.com/did-the-wise-men-arrive-12-days-after-jesus-birth-or-much-later/.

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Week One -- Scripture: Zacharias to have Son . . . 
Week Two -- Scripture: Jesus' Birth Foretold . . . 
Week Three -- Scripture: Zacharias' son, John, is born . . . 
Week Four -- Jesus is Born . . . 

When Devout Women Pray

~~ a Devotional ~~

~~ by tkbrown
Source: Holy Bible — New King James Version (NKJV)

Lydia Becomes a Christian

Acts 16:11-15

  • 11 — “Therefore, sailing from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samo-thrace, and the next day came to Neapolis,”
  • 12 — “and from there to Philippi, which is the foremost city of that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city for some days.”
  • 13 — “And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there.”
  • 14 — “Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul.”
  • 15 — “And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ So she persuaded us.”

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Lydia was a businesswoman who met with a group of women to make prayer on the Sabbath day by the riverside in Philippi of Macedonia. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira.

Paul and his party, who had just recently arrived in Philippi, joined the women. There, Paul met Lydia. “And the Lord opened her [Lydia’s] heart to heed the things spoken by Paul,” (Acts 16:14 NKJV). Thus, God had seen Lydia’s heart and had deemed her prayers worthy of being heard. He answered her prayers by sending Paul to speak with her.

Lydia and her household saw the truth in Paul’s teachings and were baptized into Christ’s church. Afterward, she begged of Paul and his team that they stay in her house if they judged her heart to be faithful to God. Paul said she persuaded them.

What this says is, even before she became a Christian, Lydia’s prayers were fervent enough to be heard by God and Jesus Christ. Her prayers were recognized as those of a woman who was truly searching for the truth, and He answered her prayers.

Typically, When the prayers uttered before becoming a Christian are referenced as being ‘heard’, it is those of Cornelius that are mentioned and studied.

Perhaps, as encouragement to devout women of faith, we should make an effort to show the same virtue and righteous recognition are given to Lydia’s prayers. Thus, when a woman of ‘faith’ prays, God hears and answers.

Lydia continued to support efforts to grow the church in Philippi.

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Photo Above: by reenablack @ pixabay.com.

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Pick Yourself Up . . .

Picture Quotes
picturequotes.com

~~ an Essay ~~

~~ by tkbrown

When I was growing up, my mamma and daddy quoted a lot of ‘old sayings’ in response to situations encountered in daily living. Oftentimes, when I was discouraged by not succeeding at something I had tried, my mamma would say, “Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try it all over again.” At the time, I did not realize just how much her sayings helped me to do just that — move on. Inevitably, when I tried again, I would move closer to my intended goal. This would encourage me, and I would keep trying. Each time, as I moved a little closer to my goal, I was encouraged just enough to ‘try again.’

I thought of and referred to the saying earlier tonight, and I decided to find out from whence the saying derives. So, I did a Google search on it. According to Wikipedia, the source most readily credited is The song, “Pick Yourself Up,” sang by Frank Sinatra, composed by Jerome Kern in 1936 with lyrics written by Dorothy Fields. Wikipedia provides some further information regarding the song. “Like most popular songs of the era, it features a 32-bar chorus with an extended coda. It’s rhyming scheme is AABA style, with some variations among the A sections.” The song was first introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the 1936 film ‘Swing Time.’ Astaire also recorded the song on his own that year for the Brunswick lable (Eds. Wikipedia). In addition, Wikipedia shows the song was recorded by several other artists and has been utilized by a number of television shows through the decades.

While I do not believe the ‘old saying’ originated with the song, I do believe it became more prominent with the publication; and it brought the words to my mammas attention. I am grateful it did. Many is the time that I relied on strength from these words. It is a strength I tried to hand down to my children; hopefully, they are now passing it down to their children.

Since I believed the song was not the origin of the saying, a bit more research reveals it probably stems from Isaiah 52:2 in the Old Testament of the Holy Bible.
“Shake yourself from the dust, arise;
Sit down, O Jerusalem!
Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck,
O captive daughter of Zion!” (NKJV)

This scripture, in combination with the rest of Isaiah Chapter 52, references the decline of Israel during and after their captivity in Egypt. In this chapter, Isaiah is telling Israel it is time to get over what has happened to them and start anew.

Thus, it is my belief that this ‘old saying’ derives from scripture — as does, in all probability, the song. Below, I provide the words to the song, as recorded by Frank Sinatra. I also provide links to YouTube recordings by Frank Sinatra and by Nat “King” Cole. Enjoy all three, then tell me what you think. Does this ‘old saying’ originate with scripture in Isaiah Chapter 52, Verse 2 — or does the song implement the saying?

Frank Sinatra
Photo from: biography.com
Pick Yourself Up
Sang By: Frank Sinatra

Now nothing's impossible, I've found for when my chin is on the
ground,
I pick myself up, dust myself off, and start all over again.
Don't lose your confidence if you slip, be grateful for a pleasant trip,
and pick yourself up, dust off, start over again.
Work like a soul inspired until the battle of the day is won.
You may be sick and tired, but you be a man, my son.
Will you remember the famous men who have to fall to rise again?
So, take a deep breath, pick yourself up, start all over again.

You gotta work like a soul inspired until the battle of the day is won.
You may be sick and tired, but you be a man, my son.
Will you remember the famous men who have to fall and then to rise
again?
So, take a deep breath, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all
over again.

Once again now:
Will you remember the famous men who have to fall and then rise
again.
So, take a deep breath, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start
all over again.

That's enough now.

Source:
LyricFind
Composed 1936 by Jerome Kern with lyrics by Dorothy Fields.
Pick Yourself Up lyrics (copyright) Universal Music Publishing Group,
Shapiro Bernstein & Co. Inc.

The following link will take you to the performance by Frank Sinatra:
Argosy34 — You Tube — 10 July 2010.
https://youtu.be/3EFPJL1uQbs

The recording by Nat “King” Cole and George Shearing includes lyric variations. The following link will access their version:
Paolo Pineda — You Tube — 20 June 2011.
https://youtu.be/QqC5YtutWAU

Sources:
Eds. (2019). Bible Hub: Isaiah 52:2 — New King James Version (NKJV). (11 November 2019). https://biblehub.com/isaiah/52-2.htm.

Eds. (2019). Google: Pick Yourself Up. (11 November 2019). Google. https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ACYBGNRImrm4Hd_wNUA7FweTdlSVnmWCOg%3A1573457900640&source=hp&ei=7A_JXY6BJYexgget-pmYDA&q=pick+yourself+up+dust+yourself+off+and+start+all+over+again+lyrics&oq=&gs_l=psy-ab.1.4.35i362i39l10.0.0..7989…0.0..0.135.135.0j1……0……gws-wiz…..10.HCwL6mZ6lJU.  

Eds. (2 September 2019). Wikipedia: Pick Yourself Up. Wikimedia project, Powered by MediaWiki. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pick_Yourself_Up.