Matthew

 “He alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see.” (1 Timothy 6:16 – NET)

Ectoderm to Neuroectoderm: 20 days to 30 days

 “This is the list of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, a descendant of David, who was a descendant of Abraham. From Abraham to King David, the following ancestors are listed: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and his brothers; then Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar), Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon, Boaz (his mother was Rahab), Obed (his mother was Ruth), Jesse, and King David. From David to the time when the people of Israel were taken into exile in Babylon, the following ancestors are listed: David, Solomon (his mother was the woman who had been Uriah's wife), Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, and Jehoiachin and his brothers.” (Matthew 1:1-11 – GN)

 Judah marries a Canaanite woman  “When Judah saw her, he thought that she was a prostitute, because she had her face covered. He went over to her at the side of the road and said, ‘All right, how much do you charge?’ (He did not know that she was his daughter-in- law.)” (Genesis 38:15,16 – GN)  “About three months later someone told Judah, ‘Your daughter-in-law Tamar has been acting like a whore, and now she is pregnant.’ Judah ordered, ‘Take her out and burn her to death.’” (Genesis 38:24,25 – GN)

 “This is the list of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, a descendant of David, who was a descendant of Abraham. From Abraham to King David, the following ancestors are listed: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and his brothers; then Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar), Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon, Boaz (his mother was Rahab), Obed (his mother was Ruth), Jesse, and King David. From David to the time when the people of Israel were taken into exile in Babylon, the following ancestors are listed: David, Solomon (his mother was the woman who had been Uriah's wife), Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, and Jehoiachin and his brothers.” (Matthew 1:1-11 – GN)

 “He always had the nature of God, but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God. Instead of this, of his own free will he gave up all he had, and took the nature of a servant. He became like a human being and appeared in human likeness.” (Philippians 2:6-7 – GN)

 “And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Luke 2:7 – NET)  “This very day in David's town your Savior was born- --Christ the Lord! And this is what will prove it to you:  you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great army of heaven's angels appeared with the angel, singing praises to God: ‘Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and peace on earth…” (Luke 2:11-14 – GN)

 “But we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, so that through God’s grace he should die for everyone. We see him now crowned with glory and honor because of the death he suffered. It was only right that God, who creates and preserves all things, should make Jesus perfect through suffering, in order to bring many children to share his glory.” (Hebrews 2:9-11 – GN)

 “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” (John 1:46 – GN)  “Then they scoffed, ‘He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And His sisters live right here among us.’ They were deeply offended and refused to believe in Him.” (Mark 6:3 – NLT)

 “I am a God who is everywhere and not in one place only. No one can hide where I cannot see them. Do you not know that I am everywhere in heaven and on earth?” (Jeremiah 23:23-24 – GNB)  Omnipresence, Omniscience, Omnipotence  “So Jesus answered them, ‘I tell you the truth: the Son can do nothing on his own; he does only what he sees his Father doing. What the Father does, the Son also does.’” (John 5:19 – GNB)

 “In the beginning the Word already existed; the Word was with God, and the Word was God….The Word was the source of life, and this life brought light to people…This was the real light---the light that comes into the world and shines on all people….The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us…. No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is Himself God, is near to the Father's heart. He has revealed God to us.” (John 1:1,4,14,18)  “…he will be called Immanuel’ (which means, ‘God is with us’)” (Matthew 1:23)

 “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’” (Matthew 3:1-2 NKJV)  “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Matthew 4:17 NKJV)  Meta - noia  “Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of heaven is near.” (Matthew 3:1-2 GW)  “From then on, Jesus began to tell people, ‘Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of heaven is near!’” (Matthew 4:17 GW)

 “…the Kingdom of heaven is near!” (Matthew 3:2 – GN)  “The greatest in the Kingdom of heaven is the one who humbles himself and becomes like this child.” (Matthew 18:4 – GN)  “…the Kingdom of God has already come to you.” (Luke 11:20 – GN)  “…the Kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21 – GN)

 “Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!” (Matthew 5:3 – GN)

Why did Jesus come?  “Jesus came to die, to pay the price for my sins.”  “Saved by the blood.”

Blood

 “…an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, ‘Herod will be looking for the child in order to kill him. So get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave.’” (Matthew 2:13 – GN)

 “…if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you will not have life in yourselves. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them to life on the last day. For my flesh is the real food; my blood is the real drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them.” (John 6:53-55).

 “I pray that they will all be one, just as You and I are one--as You are in Me, Father, and I am in You. And may they be in Us so that the world will believe You sent Me. I have given them the glory You gave Me, so they may be one as We are one. I am in them and You are in Me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that You sent Me and that You love them as much as You love Me.” (John 17:21-23 – NLT)

The Atonement  Webster’s: “reparation for an offense or injury”  Dictionary.com: “to make amends”  Latin “ad” (“to, at”) and “unum” (“one”)  Literally: “to at-one”, “at-one-ment”  16 th century “atwun”  Shakespeare (2 parties reaching a reconciliation)

 KJV  “And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” (Romans 5:11 - KJV)  So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.” (Romans 5:11 – NLT)

 “I no longer call you servants, because servants do not know their master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15 - TNIV)

 “Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the Devil. After spending forty days and nights without food, Jesus was hungry.” (Matthew 4:1-2)  “The Son of God appeared for this very reason, to destroy what the Devil had done. “ (1 John 3:8)

 “Then the Devil came to him and said, ‘If you are God’s Son, order these stones to turn into bread.’” (Matthew 4:3)  “Then a voice said from heaven, ‘This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased.’”(Matthew 3:17)  “Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1)

 “Then some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees spoke up. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we want to see you perform a miracle.’ ‘How evil and godless are the people of this day!’ Jesus exclaimed. ‘You ask me for a miracle? No! The only miracle you will be given is the miracle of the prophet Jonah.’” (Matthew 12:38-39 GNB)

 “Some Pharisees and Sadducees who came to Jesus wanted to trap him, so they asked him to perform a miracle for them, to show that God approved of him.” (Matthew 16:1 – GNB)  “You were going to tear down the Temple and build it back up in three days! Save yourself if you are God’s Son! Come on down from the cross!” (Matthew 27:40 GNB)

 But Jesus answered, ‘The scripture says, ‘Human beings cannot live on bread alone, but need every word that God speaks.’” (Matthew 4:3-4 GNB)

 “Then the Devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, the Holy City, set him on the highest point of the Temple, and said to him, ‘ If you are God’s Son, throw yourself down, for the scripture says, 'God will give orders to his angels about you; they will hold you up with their hands, so that not even your feet will be hurt on the stones.'  Jesus answered, ‘But the scripture also says, 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Matthew 4:5-7 – GNB)

 “Then the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their greatness. ‘All this I will give you,’ the Devil said, ‘if you kneel down and worship me.’” (Matthew 4:8-9 – GNB)

 “Jesus’ refusal was curt: ‘Beat it, Satan!’ He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from Deuteronomy: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and only him. Serve him with absolute single- heartedness.’ The Test was over. The Devil left. And in his place, angels! Angels came and took care of Jesus’ needs.” (Matthew 4:10,11 – The Message)

 “Jesus saw the crowds and went up a hill, where he sat down. His disciples gathered around him, and he began to teach them:  ‘Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them! Happy are those who mourn; God will comfort them! Happy are those who are humble; they will receive what God has promised! Happy are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Happy are those who are merciful to others; God will be merciful to them! Happy are the pure in heart; they will see God! Happy are those who work for peace; God will call them his children! Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them! Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers.’” (Matthew 5:1-11 – GN, NET)

 “Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!”  “When Simon Peter saw what had happened, he fell on his knees before Jesus and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord! I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8 – GN)  “You say, 'I am rich and well off; I have all I need.' But you do not know how miserable and pitiful you are! You are poor, naked, and blind. I advise you, then, to buy gold from me, pure gold, in order to be rich. Buy also white clothing to dress yourself and cover up your shameful nakedness. Buy also some ointment to put on your eyes, so that you may see.” (Revelation 3:17-18 – GN)

 “Happy are those who mourn; God will comfort them!”  “I don’t do the good I want to do; instead I do the evil that I do not want to do.” (Romans 7:19 – GN)  “For I am the least of all the apostles---I do not even deserve to be called an apostle…” (1 Corinthians 15:9 – GN)  “When the people who had gathered there to watch the spectacle saw what happened, they all went back home, beating their breasts in sorrow.” (Luke 23:48 – GN)

 “Happy are those who are humble; they will receive what God has promised!”  “God blesses those who are gentle and lowly, for the whole earth will belong to them.” (NLT)  “If you want to be great, you must be the servant of all the others. And if you want to be first, you must be the slave of the rest. The Son of Man did not come to be a slave master, but a slave who will give his life to rescue many people.” (Matthew 20:26-28 – CEV)

 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.”  “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalms 51:10 – NLT)  “Why are my wounds incurable? Why won’t they heal? Do you intend to disappoint me like a stream that goes dry in the summer?…LORD, heal me and I will be completely well.” (Jeremiah 15:18, 17:14 – GN)  “The veil is removed only when a person is joined to Christ…whenever a person turns [in repentance] to the Lord, the veil is stripped off and taken away…And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another…” (2 Corinthians 3:16-18 – Amplified)  “Yes, may you come to know his love---although it can never be fully known---and so be completely filled with the very nature of God.” (Ephesians 3:18-19 – GN)

 “Happy are those who are merciful to others; God will be merciful to them!”  “Be merciful just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36 – GN)  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and the most important commandment. The second most important commandment is like it: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.' The whole Law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets depend on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:37-40 – GN)

 “How was our ancestor Abraham put right with God? It was through his actions, when he offered his son Isaac on the altar. Can't you see? His faith and his actions worked together; his faith was made perfect through his actions….And so Abraham was called God's friend.” (James 2:21-23 – GN)

 “The people asked him, ‘What are we to do, then?’ He answered, ‘Whoever has two shirts must give one to the man who has none, and whoever has food must share it.’ Some tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, ‘Teacher, what are we to do?’ ‘Don't collect more than is legal,’ he told them. Some soldiers also asked him, ‘What about us? What are we to do?’ He said to them, ‘Don't take money from anyone by force or accuse anyone falsely. Be content with your pay.’” (Luke 3:10-14 – GN)

 “Happy are the pure in heart; they will see God!”  “The new covenant that I will make with the people of Israel will be this: I will put my law within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. None of them will have to teach a neighbor to know the LORD, because all will know me, from the least to the greatest.” (Jeremiah 31:33-34 – GN)

 “Happy are those who work for peace; God will call them his children!”  “Christ came and preached the Good News of peace to all…It is through Christ that all of us…are able to come in the one Spirit into the presence of the Father.” (Ephesians 2:17,18 – GN)  “Through the Son, then, God decided to bring the whole universe back to himself. God made peace through his Son's blood on the cross and so brought back to himself all things, both on earth and in heaven.” (Colossians 1:20 – GN)  “So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate, and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace.” (Ephesians 6:14-15 – GN)  “How wonderful it is to see a messenger coming across the mountains, bringing good news, the news of peace!” (Isaiah 52:7 – GN)

 “Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them! Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers.”  “Remember that I told you, A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word and obeyed My teachings, they will also keep and obey yours. But they will do all this to you because of [your bearing] My name and on My account, for they do not know or understand the One Who sent Me.” (John 15:20-21 – GN)  “As the apostles left the Council, they were happy, because God had considered them worthy to suffer disgrace for the sake of Jesus.” (Acts 5:41 – GN)

 “You are like light for the whole world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead it is put on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16 – GN)  Paul and Silas, “who have turned the world upside down, have come here too.” (Acts 17:6 – NKJV)

 Truth about God’s character, and our own character  Mourn one’s own selfish character  Surrender self – humility  Thirst for a new heart/right spirit  Love for neighbor  Christ-like character (law of love written on the heart)  Spread the Good News about God  Persecution  Great light to the world

 “Don’t suppose that I came to do away with the Law and the Prophets. I did not come to do away with them, but to give them their full meaning.” (Matthew 5:17 – CEV)  “I tell you, then, that you will be able to enter the Kingdom of heaven only if you are more faithful than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees in doing what God requires.” (Matthew 5:20 – GN)

 “You’re familiar with the command to the ancients, ‘Do not murder.’ I’m telling you that anyone who is so much as angry with a brother or sister is guilty of murder.” (Matthew 5:21,22 – The Message)  “You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But now I tell you: anyone who looks at a woman and wants to possess her is guilty of committing adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28 – GN)

 “You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But now I tell you: do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap your left cheek too. And if someone takes you to court to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat as well. And if one of the occupation troops forces you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two miles. When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something, lend it to him.” (Matthew 5:38-42 – GN)

 “You have heard that it was said, 'Love your friends, hate your enemies.' But now I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may become the children of your Father in heaven. For he makes his sun to shine on bad and good people alike, and gives rain to those who do good and to those who do evil. Why should God reward you if you love only the people who love you? Even the tax collectors do that! And if you speak only to your friends, have you done anything out of the ordinary? Even the pagans do that! You must be perfect---just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48 – GN)

 “Make certain you do not perform your religious duties in public so that people will see what you do…So when you give something to a needy person, do not make a big show of it, as the hypocrites do in the houses of worship and on the streets. They do it so that people will praise them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. But when you help a needy person, do it in such a way that even your closest friend will not know about it. Then it will be a private matter.” (Matthew 6:1-4 – GN)

 “When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long. Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven: May your holy name be honored; may your Kingdom come; may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:7-10)  “Our Father in heaven, reveal who you are.” (The Message)  “Some Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come. His answer was, ‘The Kingdom of God does not come in such a way as to be seen. No one will say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!'; because the Kingdom of God is within you.’” (Luke 17:20-21 – GN)

 “When Jesus finished saying these things, the crowd was amazed at the way he taught. He wasn't like the teachers of the Law; instead, he taught with authority.” (Matthew 7:28-29 – GN)

 “Jesus went to the territory near the town of Caesarea Philippi, where he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ ‘Some say John the Baptist,’ they answered. ‘Others say Elijah, while others say Jeremiah or some other prophet.’ ‘What about you?’ he asked them. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ ‘Good for you, Simon son of John!’ answered Jesus. ‘For this truth did not come to you from any human being, but it was given to you directly by my Father in heaven.  This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out. And that’s not all. You will have complete and free access to God’s kingdom, keys to open any and every door: no more barriers between heaven and earth, earth and heaven. A yes on earth is yes in heaven. A no on earth is no in heaven.” (Matthew 16:13-17 – GN; 18,19 – The Message)

 “We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we know the real God. We are in the one who is real, his Son Jesus Christ. This Jesus Christ is the real God and eternal life.” (1 John 5:20)