November 15, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Reactions to Christ

  

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Reactions to Christ

Matthew 26:57-68 – New International Version (NIV)

⁵⁷ “Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. ⁵⁸ But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome.

⁵⁹ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. ⁶⁰ But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward.

Finally two came forward ⁶¹ and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

⁶² Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶³ But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

⁶⁴ “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

⁶⁵ Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. ⁶⁶ What do you think?”

“He is worthy of death,” they answered.

⁶⁷ Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him ⁶⁸ and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”

Where did “those who had arrested Jesus” take Him (verse 57)?

Who did Peter sit down with to “see the outcome” (verse 58)?

Why were the “chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin” looking for false evidence against Jesus (verse 59)?

In your opinion, why could they not find any false evidence even “though many false witnesses came forward” (verse 60)?

What did the two false witnesses agree on (verse 61)?

How did Jesus respond to the testimony and the high priest’s question about it (verses 62 and 63)?

Who did the high priest ask Jesus if He was (verse 63)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus say “you have said so” (verse 64)?

What did Jesus say to “all of you” (verse 64)?

How did the high priest react to what Jesus said (verse 65)?

What did “they” say Jesus was worthy of (verse 66)?

Where did “they” spit (verse 67)?

What did “they” say after they slapped Jesus (verses 67 and 68)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Daniel 7:13-14 - New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. ¹⁴ He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”

When did Daniel have this vision (verse 13)?

Who approached the “Ancient of Days” (verse 13)?

Who was “given authority, glory and sovereign power” (verse 13)?

Who worshiped Him (verse 13)?

When will His dominion end (verse 14)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, if we assume that the high priest knew the prophecies of Danial and this passage in Daniel 7:13-14 then what does the high priest’s reaction in Matthew 26:57-68 of Jesus statement “From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven” mean that he thought about Jesus?

Acts 9:1-19 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest ² and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. ³ As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. ⁴ He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

⁵ “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. ⁶ “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

⁷ The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. ⁸ Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. ⁹ For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

¹⁰ In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord,” he answered.

¹¹ The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. ¹² In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

¹³ “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

¹⁵ But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. ¹⁶ I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

¹⁷ Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, ¹⁹ and after taking some food, he regained his strength.”

What was Saul doing (verse 1)?

What did he ask the high priest for (verse 2)?

Where was he when “a light from heaven flashed around him” (verse 3)?

What question was he ask (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why did Saul ask “who are you, Lord” (verse 5)?

Who was speechless (verse 7)?

Why was Saul led “by the hand into Damascus” (verse 8)?

Who is Ananias (verse 10)?

What was Ananias told that “a man from Tarsus named Saul” was doing (verse 11)?

What had the “man from Tarsus named Saul” seen in a vision (verse 12)?

How did Ananias respond to the Lord (verses 13 and 14)?

Who does the Lord say that “this man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name” to (verse 15)?

What will the Lord show Saul (verse 16)?

How did Ananias address Saul (verse 17)?

Why did Ananias say he was sent to Saul (verse 17)?

What fell from “Saul’s eyes, and he could see again” (verse 18)?

What did Saul do after “he got up” (verse 18)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what are the things in Acts 9:1-19 that show the “one like a son of man” from Daniel 7:13-14 exercising some of the “authority, glory and sovereign power” that He is given?

In your opinion, how are the meetings of Caiaphas and Jesus in Matthew 26:57-68 and Paul and Jesus in Acts 9:1-19 similar and how are they different?

1 Corinthians 2:6-16 – New International Version (NIV)

⁶ “We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. ⁷ No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹ However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
    what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”—
    the things God has prepared for those who love him—

¹⁰ these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. ¹¹ For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. ¹² What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. ¹³ This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. ¹⁴ The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. ¹⁵ The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, ¹⁶ for,

“Who has known the mind of the Lord
    so as to instruct him?”

But we have the mind of Christ.”

What kind “message of wisdom” does Paul not speak of (verse 6)?

What does Paul declare from “God’s wisdom” (verse 7)?

What would the “rulers of this age” have not done if they understood the message from “God’s wisdom” (verse 8)?

What does the quote “what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived-the thing God has prepared for those who love him” tell us about the ability of human wisdom to understand God’s wisdom, His love, or His actions (verse 9)?

Who reveals God’s wisdom (verse 10)?

In your opinion, how does Paul explain the Holy Spirit’s ability to reveal God’s wisdom, His love and His actions (verse 11)?

What spirits might we have received (verse 12)?

What wisdom does Paul claim not to speak by (verse 13)?

Who considers the “the things that come from the Spirit of God” foolishness (verse 14)?

Who has the “mind of Christ” (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does the actions of Saul in Acts 9:1-19 who went to the high priest for letters but then spent three days praying and fasting after he met Jesus on the road to Damascus, then received the Holy Spirit when Ananias placed his hands on him illustrate the conflict between worldly wisdom and God’s wisdom that Paul (Saul) talks about in 1 Corinthians 2:6-16?

In your opinion, how does vision of Daniel in Daniel 7:13-14 who saw “one like the son of man” receiving “authority, glory and sovereign power” begin to anticipate Jesus, but still miss the amazing “things God has prepared for those who love him” as Paul quotes in 1 Corinthians 2:6-16?

In your opinion, what does the difference in the reaction of Ananias to Jesus in Matthew 26:57-68 illustrate acceptance of worldly wisdom and the reaction of Paul to Jesus in Acts 9:1-9 illustrate a rejection of worldly wisdom to accept God’s wisdom, both discussed by Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:6-16?

In your opinion, what do these passages, from Matthew, Daniel, Acts and 1 Corinthians show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 26:69 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

November 8, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Dying by the Sword and Redeemed by the Blood

  

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Dying by the Sword and Redeemed by the Blood

Matthew 26:47-56 – New International Version (NIV)

⁴⁷ “While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people. ⁴⁸ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him.” ⁴⁹ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him.

⁵⁰ Jesus replied, “Do what you came for, friend.”

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. ⁵¹ With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

⁵² “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. ⁵³ Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?”

⁵⁵ In that hour Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. ⁵⁶ But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.”

Who came while Jesus was speaking (verse 47)?

Who sent the “large crowd armed with swords and clubs” to Jesus (verse 47)?

What was the signal that “the betrayer had arranged” (verse 48)?

In your opinion, why did Judas say “Greetings, Rabbi” (verse 49)?

What did the men with Judas do (verse 50)?

Who “reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear” (verse 51)?

What will happen to “all who draw the sword” (verse 52)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus say “do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels” (verse 53)?

What said that “it must happen in this way” (verse 54)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus ask about leading a rebellion and then say that “every day I sat in the temple courts teaching” (verse 55)?

Whose writings would be fulfilled by all that had taken place (verse 56)?

What did the disciples do (verse 56)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Genesis 9:1-7 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. ² The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands. ³ Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.

⁴ “But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. ⁵ And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being.

⁶ “Whoever sheds human blood,
    by humans shall their blood be shed;
for in the image of God
    has God made mankind.

⁷ As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.”

Who did God bless and say “be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth” (verse 1)?

What is “given into your hands” (verse 2)?

What is “everything that lives and moves” to be (verse 3)?

What kind of meat must not be eaten (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why will an accounting be demanded “for your lifeblood” (verse 5)?

Who will shed the blood of those who shed human blood (verse 6)?

In whose image is mankind made (verse 6)?

What instruction is given (verse 7)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the statement in Genesis 9:1-7 that “and from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being” and the statement of Jesus in Matthew 26:47-56 that “all who draw the sword will die by the sword” similar?

James 2:8-13 – New International Version (NIV)

⁸ “If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. ⁹ But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. ¹⁰ For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. ¹¹ For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

¹² Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, ¹³ because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

What “royal law” does James mention (verse 8)?

How are we convicted if we show favoritism (verse 9)?

Who is guilty of breaking the whole law (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what point is James trying to make when he says that “if you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker” (verse 11)?

How should we “speak and act” (verse 12)?

What triumphs over judgment (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, if an accounting is demanded for anyone who sheds human blood as is stated in Genesis 9:1-7 and if the person who “keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” as James says in James 2:8-13 then is the same accounting demanded of the one who does not honor the Sabbath and keep it holy and of the one who commits murder?

In your opinion, how does the decision of Jesus in Matthew 26:47-56 to not call the “twelve legions of angels” to rescue Him from the arrest show His obedience to James 2:8-13 where it says to “love your neighbor as yourself”?

1 Peter 1:17-21 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁷ “Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰ He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.”

How should Christians live out their time in the world (verse 17)?

What were Christians redeemed from (verse 18)?

What did redeem Christians (verses 18 and 19)?

When was Jesus chosen (verse 20)?

Who do Christians believe in because of Jesus (verse 21)?

What did God do for Jesus (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the scary knowledge that if we have committed any sin make us guilty of breaking all the law according to James 2:8-13 become changed to hope when we understand that our redemption from all those sins is “the precious blood of Christ” that Peter discusses in 1 Peter 1:17-21?

In your opinion, how does “the precious blood of Christ” that Peter discusses in 1 Peter 1:17-21 become our answer for the “accounting” that God demands in Genesis 9:1-7?

In your opinion, how do you think that the fact that Peter was the one who Jesus told in Matthew 26:47-56 that “all who draw the sword will die by the sword” effected his understanding of being “redeemed from the empty way of life” and the “precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” in 1 Peter 1:17-21?

In your opinion, what do these passages, from Matthew, Genesis, James and 1 Peter show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 26:57 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

November 1, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Gardens and Prayer

  

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Gardens and Prayer

Matthew 26:36-46 – New International Version (NIV)

³⁶ “Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

⁴⁰ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. ⁴¹ “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

⁴³ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. ⁴⁴ So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.

⁴⁵ Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Where did Jesus go with the disciples (verse 36)?

What did He instruct the disciples to do “while I go over there and pray” (verse 36)?

Who did Jesus take with Him (verse 37)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus begin to “be sorrowful and troubled” (verse 37)?

How was Jesus’ soul (verse 38)?

What did Jesus ask to be taken from Him (verse 39)?

Whose will did Jesus pray to be done (verse 39)?

What were the disciples doing when Jesus returned to them (verse 40)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus say “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (verse 41)?

What is different between Jesus’ first prayer and His second prayer (verses 39 and 42)?

Why were the disciples sleeping (verse 43)?

What did Jesus do a third time (verse 44)?

Who is the “Son of Man” delivered to (verse 45)?

Who is coming (verse 46)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Genesis 3:1-7 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”

Who is “more crafty than any of the wild animals” (verse 1)?

What did he say to the woman (verse 1)?

How did the woman respond (verses 2 and 3)?

In your opinion, how is her answer about the tree that is in the middle of the garden different from God’s instruction (verse 3)?

How did the serpent contradict God (verse 4)?

In your opinion, how is the serpent’s statement a truth and how is it a lie (verse 5)?

What made the woman want to eat the fruit (verse 6)?

Where was her husband and what did he do (verse 6)?

How did eating the fruit change the couple (verse 7)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, why was the outcome of Jesus’ time in the garden in Matthew 26:36-46 different from Adam and Eve’s time in the garden in Genesis 3:1-7?

Hebrews 5:7-10 - New International Version (NIV)

⁷ During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. ⁸ Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered ⁹ and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him ¹⁰ and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

When did Jesus offer up “prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears” (verse 7)?

Who did Jesus offer the “prayers and petitions” to (verse 7)?

Why were Jesus “prayers and petitions” heard (verse 7)?

How did Jesus learn obedience (verse 8)?

When did Jesus become “the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (verse 9)?

What was Jesus designated by God to be (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the fact that Eve and then Adam choose to believe the serpent about the fruit and in eating it they choose death in Genesis 3:1-7 and Jesus went with “prays and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death” but then chooses obedience to death in Hebrews 5:7-10?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s discussion of the prayers of Jesus in Hebrews 5:7-10 help to understand more about Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane in Matthew 26:36-46?

James 1:12-18 – New International Version (NIV)

¹² “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

¹³ When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; ¹⁴ but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

¹⁶ Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ¹⁸ He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.”

Who is blessed (verse 12)?

What will that person receive that the “Lord has promised to those who love him” (verse 12)?

What should we not say when we are tempted (verse 13)?

When is “each person” tempted (verse 14)?

What does “desire” give birth to after it is conceived (verse 15)?

What does “sin” give birth to when it is full-grown (verse 15)?

In your opinion, why does James tell us “don’t be deceived” (verse 16)?

Where does “every good and perfect gift” come from (verse 17)?

How does the heavenly Father choose “to give us birth” (verse 18)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does the discussion of Paul in Hebrews 5:7-10 about the way Jesus prayed, suffered and learned obedience help us to understand how to persevere under trial as instructed by James in James 1:12-18?

In your opinion, how does the story of Adam and Eve falling prey to temptation in Genesis 3:1-1-7 illustrate for us the instruction of James in James 1:12-18 that “each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed”?

In your opinion, do you think that Jesus concluding with “your will be done” in His pleading for the cup to be taken from Him in Matthew 26:36-46 was because He focused on some variation of the truth that “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” as James says in James 1:12-18?

In your opinion, what do these passages, from Matthew, Genesis, Hebrews and James show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 26:47 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)