MATTHEW 9 9-17

   🍃🕊️01/27 - GospeL Verses 🍃🕊️

9 - As Jesus was walking on, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collecting booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. (Matthew who’s account this is, was a tax collector, who were not popular with fellow Hebrews/Israelis/Jews, as the taxes collected were for Imperial Rome. World domination - Imperialism - being the main dream of the rogue powers and principalities.)

     10 And as Jesus was reclined at table in the house of Matthew, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining at table with Jesus and his disciples. 11 Now when the Pharisees saw this! They asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, Jesus said, “Those who are not ill, don’t need a physician, the ones who are not well do. 13 Go and learn what this means - ‘It’s mercy I desire, and not sacrifices.’ I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

     14 Some disciples of John came looking for him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples don’t?” 15 Jesus answered them with a question, “Can the wedding guests mourn while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away, and then they’ll fast. 16 Because no one sews on a piece of unshrunk cloth onto an old garment, for the patch will tear the garment worse than at first. 17 Neither do we put new wine in an old wineskin, for the skin will burst, spilling the wine and ruining the skin. But new wine is put into new wineskins, so both the wine and the skin are preserved.”

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🗝️ [  ] - word/language insights, usually from biblehub dot com - peering through translator partial unbelief; facts, cross references, etc.

      {  } - thots

Tomorrows verses - Matthew 9:18-26

By Necessity Paraphrased

A Daily ‘Enter the Story’ Gospel Reading & Study

1 Corinthians 8:9-13

 Universalism in the New Testament

11/12 ~ From New Testament Letters

  🕊️ (In the Order Believed Written)

9 - But take care that this right of yours doesn’t somehow become a stumbling block to someone else. 10 For if anyone sees you eating in an idol's temple, will he not be encouraged, even though his conscience is weak concerning it, to eat food offered to idols? 11 And so by your freedom (because you know there are no other ‘gods’) this other one is harmed, the brother or sister for whom Christ died. 12 Thereby, trespassing against one another, wounding their conscience when it’s weak, is also against Christ. 13 Therefore, if food makes my brother or sister stumble, I will not eat meat lest I cause them to stumble. {Or drink wine.. Eat pork.. “Hast thou faith? Have it alone before God.” No wine when with your recovering alcoholic brother or sister! Or any it would offend no matter the moderation. Why be unnecessarily divisive?}

                            ~ * ~

🗝️ [  ] - word/language insights, usually from biblehub dot com, and facts, cross references, etc.

      {  } - thots

Tomorrows verses - 1 Corinthians 9:1-11

By Necessity Paraphrased

Annual Reading & Study

The Bread and The Wine

Quiet reading, contemplation and prayer time is absolutely necessary if one is to make any progress in the spiritual/christian life. The spirit man/woman cannot grow without nourishment. And our nourishment is the Bread and the Wine. Jesus said it on the very evening before he was crucified (executed in our place, declaring and making us innocent). And remember Melchizedek? Giving Abraham bread and wine? Man/Woman "shall not live on bread alone, but upon every word from God".. And Jesus is our new wine for he gives us the Holy Spirit.. Fresh and new, not sour and old.. Human thoughts are like strands.. Like jumbled thoughts piled willy nilly atop one another.. Tangled questions and negatives left over from rushing hither and yon and helter skelter. Our "High Priest" is the only one who can untangle the knots. Quiet reading, contemplation and prayer time is how we draw close to God and attune ourselves to the peaceful quietness of His Spirit and Presence, so that we are in him, and he is in us. We have one rule to live by. Love God. Consciously loving God (praising, worshiping God) opens us up to the stream of God and His Spirit and Presence flowing into and through us. This is called "waiting upon God" and resting in his "finished work". This is the new covenant (contract) with God. And it is all received "by faith" from beginning to end. It's grace, and it's the only system that works. For it releases the POWER of God. "There's none good but God." Jesus said. That means all good, all transforming power, self improvement, comes only from God. No amount of human striving "to be good" will cut it. You see God is "all in all". He's Life and He's Perfection. Ultimately he's the only dimension, the only reality, and all will be an eternal un-breakable paradise. Anyone coming along and saying you must follow this rule, or follow that rule (usually having to do with foods and days of worship) "have fallen from grace"! "God is Love" - fill ourselves with Him - "Love works no ill" .."does no harm". If we fill ourselves with God, we will not cheat others, steal, hurt, etc, etc. Every day is a day of worship. He "is the vine, we are the branches". When we wait, by reading, contemplation and prayer, if he should seem to delay showing up, we simply continue expectant, unruffled and peaceful "waiting upon God". Fully expectant, and knowing.. Keep waiting. He will show up (become apparent to us). Absolutely guaranteed.