Chronological Bible Study – Oct 4
What I Noticed Today (Matthew 3; Mark 1; Luke 3)
Matthew 3
Matthew 3 skips over the next thirty or so years of Jesus' life resuming with the ministry of John the Baptist.
In verses 1-3, John the Baptist in the wilderness of Judea preached a message of repentance for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This fulfilled Isaiah 40:3.
In verses 4-10, many of the people came to John to be baptized. However, the Pharisees and Sadducees who heard him rejected his message.
In verses 11-12, John carried the message of repentance but believed he was unworthy to carry the sandals of the one who was coming (Jesus). While John baptized with water, Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. John also warned that Jesus would winnow (separate) the wheat from the chaff (the believers from the unbelievers) and the chaff would be burned up (Malachi 4:1).
In verses 13-17, Jesus came to John at the Jordan River and asked John to baptize him. When Jesus was baptized and came up out of the water, the heavens opened, the Spirit of God descended upon him like a dove, and a voice from heaven announced, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.”
Note: John recognized that Jesus did not need to be baptized because his baptism was a baptism of repentance of confessing sins, and Jesus was without sin.
Note: The heavens opening, the descent of the Holy Spirit and the voice of God, are all validations of the Jesus as Messiah the Son of God, and mark the beginning of his earthly ministry.
Note: All three aspects of the Godhead are present at Jesus’ baptism: God the Father who speaks to His Son, and the Holy Spirit who descends on Jesus.
Mark 1
There is a short introduction available for the book of Mark. You can read it here.
In verse 1, Mark announces the theme of his book: The Gospel of Jesus Christ, Son of God.
Note: “Gospel” means “good news.” “Jesus” is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew for Joshua, which means “Yahweh is salvation.” “Christ” is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew “Messiah.” Both “Christ” and “Son of God” are titles.
In verses 2-3, Mark records a mixed quotation from Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 3:10.
Note: This is the only instance in which Mark refers to the Old Testament.
In verses 4-8, John came into the wilderness, teaching baptism for repentance and for the forgiveness of sins.
Note: Repentance means to “turn about, a deliberate change of mind.” Forgiveness means “the removal or cancellation of debt,” in this case through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.
Note: John’s attire marked him as a man of the desert and a prophet resembling Elijah (Zechariah 13:4, 2 Kings 1:8).
John announced while he came baptizing with water, the one coming after him, would baptize with the Holy Spirit.
In verses 9-11, Jesus came to John to be baptized in the Jordan River. When He was baptized, the heavens opened, the Spirit descended upon Jesus, and the voice of God said, “You are my beloved Son, with you, I am well pleased.”
Note: Jesus was without sin, so his baptism was not a confession of sin, but an act of obedience to God.
In verses 12-13, Jesus was immediately driven into the wilderness for 40-days, where he was tempted by Satan and angels ministered to him. (See also Matthew 4:1-11)
In verses 14-15, after John was arrested, Jesus began his ministry proclaiming the gospel of God in Galilee.
In verses 16-20, as He passed along the Sea of Galilee, Jesus called Simon (Peter) and his brother Andrew who were fishermen to follow Him. Immediately, they left their nets and followed Jesus.
A little further on Jesus saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee and He called them to follow Him also. They also immediately left their nets and followed Jesus. (See also Matthew 4:18-22)
Note: In Jewish tradition, a disciple would seek out a Rabbi for instruction. Jesus instead called those who He wanted to disciple.
In verses 21-28, Jesus and the four disciples he had just called made their way to Capernaum (northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee). While Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, a man with unclean spirits came. The spirits addressed Jesus as the Holy One of God. Jesus commanded the spirit to leave the man, and it did. Because of this, Jesus’ fame spread throughout the surrounding region.
Note: It is interesting that the demons recognize Jesus immediately as the Holy One of God but the people who witnessed the miracles and heard His teaching, for the most part, did not.
In verses 29-34, Jesus immediately left the synagogue and went to the house of Simon and Andrew, along with James and John. Simon’s mother-in-law was sick, and Jesus healed her. In the evening, many people from the city gathered at their door, and Jesus healed them. (See also Matthew 8:14-15)
In verses 34-39, Jesus rose early the next morning for prayer. When the disciples found him, He told them it was time to leave to preach the Gospel in other towns throughout Galilee.
In verses 40-45, a leper came to Jesus humbly asking Him out of faith to be healed. Jesus healed him and told him not to say anything to anyone but to go and show himself to the priests and make the required offering (Leviticus 14:2-31). But the man told people about what Jesus had done so that He was surrounded by people coming to him to be healed. (See also Matthew 8:1-4)
Note: Leprosy included several serious skin diseases, not just the disease of leprosy that we think about today. A person with leprosy was exiled from society because they were unclean. Leprosy was considered incurable, except by an act of God.
Luke 3
In verses 1-2, Luke dates the approximate beginning of John’s public ministry by listing the governing officials in declining rank order: Tiberius Caesar (emperor), Pontius Pilate (governor), Herod (tetrarch), Philip (tetrarch), and Lsanias (tetrarch) during the reign of the high priests Annas and Caiaphas.
In verses 3-6, John began preaching in and around Jordan a baptism of repentance and forgiveness of sins (as it is written in Isaiah 40:3-5).
In verses 7-14, John referred to the crowd who came to be baptized as a brood of vipers, warning them to produce fruit in a way that demonstrates your repentance and faith. The crowds, tax collectors, and soldiers all asked what should they do, and John told them all to be generous, honest, and satisfied with what they have.
In verses 15-17, the people wondered whether John was the Messiah. He told them he baptized with water, but One is coming after him who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. John proclaimed the Good News to many people.
Note: The reference to fire in verse 17 is to the fire of judgment that will come in the end times.
In verses 18-20, John had rebuked Herod for taking Herodias, his brother’s wife and for all the other evil that Herod had done, so Herod had John thrown in prison.
Note: If, based on verse 1, John began his ministry about A.D. 29 and was beheaded by A.D. 32 his entire period of ministry lasted only about three years, and two years of that was in prison.
In verses 21-22, (See also Matthew 3:13-17, and Mark 1:9-11) Luke records the baptism of Jesus. As Jesus was praying the heavens opened, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, and a voice speaking from heaven said, “You are my beloved Son. I take great delight in You.” (This fulfilled Psalm 2:7 and Isaiah 42:1)
Note: Luke is the only Gospel that mentions Jesus was praying when the heavens opened.
In verses 23-28, (See also Matthew 1:1-17) Luke notes that Jesus was about 30-years old when he began His public ministry and presents the genealogy of Jesus.
Note: In the Old Testament, priests were called for duty when they were 30-years old.
Luke’s genealogy of Jesus differs from Matthew’s in several respects:
- Seventy-six names, including Jesus and Adam working backward from Jesus to God.
- Luke’s list from David to Shealtiel traces the line through Nathan, while Matthew traced the line through Solomon.
- Luke traced the physical line of Mary and the actual line of Joseph, while Matthew traced the legal line of Joseph.
- Luke’s genealogy focused on the humanity of Jesus, while Matthew’s focused on Israel (the Son of Abraham).
What did you notice in your study today? Feel free to visit the website and leave a question or a comment.