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Lk 7:18-35 – One who doubted (sermon notes)

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Text: Luke 7:18-35.

1. Who is Jesus?

John was puzzled by Jesus’ ministry.  If Jesus was truly the Messiah, and if he came to bring release to the captives, Lk 4:18, then why was he, John, languishing in jail?  More importantly, if Jesus was the Messiah, why wasn’t he going about his ministry as John had expected, Lk 3:16-17?

Doubt and uncertainty seem to be leading characteristics for many spiritual leaders, as with Moses, Num 11:10-15; Elijah, 1 Kin 19; Jeremiah, 20:7-9,14-18. …

Matthew 8:5-13/Luke 7:1-10 – son? servant? male lover?

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Mt 8:5 When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him asking for help: 8:6 “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible anguish.” 8:7 Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8:8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Instead, just say the word and my servant will be healed. 8:9 For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me.…

Genesis 6-8 – A worldwide flood?

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This description of a worldwide flood, in which the highest of mountains was submerged and which led to the deaths of all living creatures except Noah, his immediate family, and the animals taken into the ark, seems to stretch credulity well beyond its breaking point.  The water would have been more than five miles above normal sea level: where did all that water come from, and where, when the flood subsided, did it go to?

Comparative Ancient Near East Literature

Noah’s flood has many parallels in the literature of the ANE. …

Genesis 6:1f – ‘The sons of God’

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Gen 6:1 .When humankind began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 6:2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose.

Who were these ‘sons of God’?

(a) Angels or demons?

The view of many interpreters, ancient (e.g. Josephus) and modern (e.g. Wenham,) is that these are (fallen) angels, cf. 1 Pet 3:19-20; 2 Pet 2:4; Jude 6.…

Matthew 16:18 – “This rock”

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16:18 “I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

The interpretation of this saying has far-reaching implications for church government, apostolic succession, and the role of the pope.

1. The rock is Peter himself, along with his Roman successors

In support of this interpretation is the fact that what Jesus says is in the singular, and must have been addressed to Peter himself (even if it also had a wider application).  …

Galatians 3:17 – How much later?

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Gal 3:17 – ‘The law, introduced 430 years later…’

In this passage, Paul seems to be saying that the law was given 430 years the Abrahamic covenant.

The figure assigned in Gen 15:13 is 400 years, whereas 430 years is the figure assigned in Ex 12:40 (MT) to the length of stay in Egypt.

MT: The length of time the children of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years.

LXX: The length of time the children of Israel lived in Egypt and Canaan was 430 years.…

Galatians 6:16 – The Israel of God

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Gal 6:16 ‘And all who will behave in accordance with this rule, peace and mercy be on them, and on the Israel of God.’

Summary

The question is whether Paul is referring to one group of people (‘on them, that is, on the Israel of God’) or two groups (‘on them, and also on the Israel of God’).  The first interpretation is to be favoured.

In detail

I think that the meaning implied in the NIV and most other modern translations, is probably correct. …

Galatians 6:2 – ‘The law of Christ’

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Galatians 6:2 ‘Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.’

See also Gal 5:14; 1 Cor 9:21, and James 2:8 (which refers to ‘the royal law’).

Meaning

This difficult but important phrase has been variously understood as:

(a) the law of love (so most interpreters, including Brown, Bruce, Stott, Fung).  ‘The ‘law of Christ’ is to love one another as He loves us; that was the new commandment which He gave (Jn.…

Mt 1:24f;12:46-50/13:55/Mk 6:3/Jn 2:12 – Did Mary bear other children?

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Mt 1:24f  ‘He took his wife, but did not have marital relations with her until she gave birth to a son, whom he named Jesus.’

Mt 12:46–50 — While Jesus was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and brothers came and stood outside, asking to speak to him. 47 Someone told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside wanting to speak to you.” 48 To the one who had said this, Jesus replied, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?”…

Mt 21/Mk 11/Lk 19/Jn 2 – When (and how many times) did Jesus cleanse the Temple?

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According to John 2:12-22, Jesus cleansed the Temple near the beginning of his public ministry.  The Synoptists, however, record a cleansing during the last week of his earthly ministry (Mt 21:10–17; Mk 11:15–19; Lk 19:45–46).

So, was there one cleansing (and, if so, was it at the beginning or the close of his ministry)?  Or were there two cleansings?

Here are the main alternatives:-

(a) Some think that John’s chronology is correct.  The Synoptic writers could not include the account earlier, because they do not record Jesus’ earlier visits to Jerusalem, and only mention the Passover during which he was crucified.…