Lineage from Adam to Noah (7 generations). People live hundreds of years before having kids, then live hundreds more.
- Are these ages intended to be literal or are these periods?
- There seem to be implications that other people already exist by the time Cain killed Abel in Genesis 4. So are Adam and Eve and their descendants the first "chosen" or the first in general.
Jesus delivers the Sermon on the Mount.
He delivers the Beatitudes (blessed are the [insert virtue] for they shall [insert counterintuitive blessing here]).
He declares people (presumably specifically his followers) to be the salt of the earth and light of the world.
He declares that he came to fulfill the Law (of Moses), not to abolish it.
He establishes that adherence to the letter of the law is insufficient, and that the spirit matters more (so lust is as bad as adultery, and anger towards your brother is as bad as murder.)
He declares divorce for reasons other than sexual immorality to be invalid.
He states that we should not make oaths, because we don't have any power over the things we would swear by.
He repudiates "an eye for an eye" and encourages us to do more than what is asked of us.
He adds "love your enemy" to "love your neighbor" and encourages us to reach out beyond our circle.
- This is clearly important stuff. Red text pretty much the whole chapter.
- Jesus tells us that not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Does his declaration on the cross, "It is finished", satisfy this? If not, are the laws in Leviticus and elsewhere in the Old Testament still valid today?
- Has there been a call elsewhere in history prior to Jesus to show love to those who do not show love to you, and to reach out to others?
Ezra 5
The governor of the province Beyond The River (Transjordan? later Judea?) ask who gives them the right to build. They send a letter to the Persian king Darius await to hear from him as to whether the Jews have the right to build and whether their claim of right granted by Cyrus is true.
Acts 5
Ananias and Sapphira sold some of their property but did not give all the proceeds to the church. When the apostles called them on it, they both fell down dead.
The apostles and their followers preached in Solomon's Portico in Jerusalem and added lots of followers, performing healings, driving out evil spirits, and other miracles.
The Sadducees arrested them, but an angel freed them and they went back out to preach. They were going to arrest them again but they were afraid of the crowd of followers. They get a talking to from the high priest and respond "Hey, we've gotta follow God and preach Jesus. I talk what I've seen." The council wanted to kill them, but one of them, Gamaliel said, "We've had leaders before rise up with followers, but they were just cults of personality. When they died, the groups dispersed. If these guys are the real deal, ordained by God, you can't beat them, and if it's just men making up something, they'll disperse too. Don't kill them." So they were beaten and admonished, but set free.
- We live in an era where giving 10% is a big deal. Are we really going against God by not giving everything to the point where we could/should be stricken dead? This is after Jesus's sacrifice, so it's not obvious where judgment and punishment should fall for our wrongs.
- Why were Ananias and Sapphira not given an opportunity to repent? Are they punished eternally for their withholding?
- Again, the witnessing for Jesus and the preaching "Christ crucified". The transition from Jesus's ministry to first-level Christology is not obvious to me at this time.
- Gamaliel is a smart dude, and I think it's interesting that he allows for the possiblity that the apostles are on God's side and they are not. I assume the beatings after are attempts to maintain political order. Were the high priests afraid that they'd be overthrown by the apostles and a new order would be established?
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