Saturday, September 26, 2015

September 27, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Conspiracies and Love



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.”

Conspiracies and Love

Matthew 26:1-5 – New International Version (NIV)
1 “When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, “As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”
Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. “But not during the festival,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”

Who did Jesus talk to (verse 1)?

When was the Passover (verse 2)?

What was going to happen at the Passover (verse 2)?

Who assembled at the palace of the high priest (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why did they secretly scheme to arrest and kill Jesus (verse 4)?

Why did they not want to arrest and kill Jesus during the festival (verse 5)?

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

Psalm 2 - New International Version (NIV)
“Why do the nations conspire
    and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up
    and the rulers band together
    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
“Let us break their chains
    and throw off their shackles.”
The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
    the Lord scoffs at them.
He rebukes them in his anger
    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
“I have installed my king
    on Zion, my holy mountain.”
I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
    today I have become your father.
Ask me,
    and I will make the nations your inheritance,
    the ends of the earth your possession.
You will break them with a rod of iron;
    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
    be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear
    and celebrate his rule with trembling.
12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
    and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”

What do the nations do (verse 1)?
Who do the kings of the earth and the rulers band together against (verse 2)?
How does the “One enthroned in heaven” respond (verse 4)?
What does the “One enthroned in heaven” say to them (verse 6)?
In your opinion, why did the Lord say “you are my son; today I have become your father” (verse 7)?
What will be the inheritance (verse 8)?
How should the kings behave (verse 10)?
Who should be served with fear (verse 11)?
Who is blessed (verse 12)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, how were the “chief priests and elders of the people” of Matthew 26:1-5 conspiring and plotting as Psalm 2 talked about?

Acts 13:26-41 - New International Version (NIV)
26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.
32 “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
“‘You are my son;
    today I have become your father.’
34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
“‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’
35 So it is also stated elsewhere:
“‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’
36 “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.
38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. 40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:
41 “‘Look, you scoffers,
    wonder and perish,
for I am going to do something in your days
    that you would never believe,
    even if someone told you.’”
Who is Paul speaking to (verse 26)?
What did the people of Jerusalem and their rulers do when they condemned Jesus (verse 27)?
What did the people of Jerusalem and their rulers ask Pilate to do (verse 28)?
When did they take Him down from the cross and lay Him in the tomb (verse 29)?
What did God do (verse 30)?
What did Paul bring (verse 32)?
How did God fulfill the promises to the ancestors (verse 33)?
In your opinion, what does it mean that “he will never be subject to decay” (verse 34)?
What happened to David after he had “served God’s purpose in his own generation” (verse 36)?
Who “did not see decay” (verse 37)?
What is proclaimed “through Jesus” (verse 38)?
Who is set free from every sin (verse 39)?
In your opinion, why do the scoffers wonder (verse 41)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, how do the “people of Jerusalem and their rulers” from Acts 13:26-41 illustrate the conspiring of the nations and the plotting of the people that Psalm 2 begins with?
In your opinion, how do the words of Paul in Acts 13:26-41 show the success that Jesus was anticipating when He said As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified” in Matthew 26:1-5?

2 Peter 1:3-11 – New International Version (NIV)
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

What has God’s divine power given us (verse 3)?
What can we participate in through “his very great and precious promises” (verse 4)?
What causes the corruption of the world (verse 4)?
In your opinion, how do we make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (verses 5, 6 and 7)?
How are kept from being “ineffective and unproductive” in our knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ (verse 8)?
Who is “nearsighted and blind” (verse 9)?
In your opinion, how do we confirm our “calling and election” (verse 10)?
What kind of welcome will we receive into “the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” if we make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (verse 11)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how do the instructions of Peter in 2 Peter 1:3-11 allow us to build upon the good news of the salvation that Paul talked about in Acts 13:26-41?
In your opinion, how does the discussion about the nations conspiring and the people plotting against God in Psalm 2 contrast with the effort that Peter instructs the “brothers and sisters” to make in 2 Peter 1:3-11?

In your opinion, how does the willingness of Jesus to go to Jerusalem to be handed over to be crucified” in Matthew illustrate the love that Peter instructs all of us to work for in 2 Peter 1:3-11?
In your opinion, what do these passages, from Matthew, Psalms, Acts and 2 Peter show us about the Great Commission?


Next, back to Matthew 26:6 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

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