These are basic notes not a full write- up
Introduction:
If you are facing a difficult time right now, whether it be financial stress, a broken relationship, maybe the death of a friend or close family member, or perhaps you feel the whole world is against you, the truth is nothing is impossible for God. We all need help occasionally, but the help we receive from God lasts for eternity, and He is always there to help us all. Abraham and Sarah are great examples of God accomplishing the impossible, giving them a son of promise even though they both were in the nineties and Abraha was pushing a hundred years old. Take time as you go through the readings of Wisdom, the New Testament, and the Old Testament, and carefully listen to the teachings, the wisdom, and the guidance each of these readings provided for us and meditate on how we can apply these steps in our own lives and journeys with Christ.
Wisdom: Reading Proverbs 1:8-19
Wisdom is Christ (John 1:1), Greek for the word- “Logos,” which means wisdom, reason, action, and word.
Our reading in Proverbs began in v. 8: "My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother. This form of address is often used throughout the Proverbs and indicates that Wisdom is like both a father and a mother and has a deep and endless love and affection for His children. We are being instructed here to flee from a life of sin and not give in to its temptations just because everyone else is sinning and living a life full of evil passions. Instead, we are called to follow the instructions of God, and we are to do good and shun evil. We can't escape this world, but we can live differently, meaning we can live the way the Lord has instructed us to, and this is our help through these times we live because the days are evil, and we must make good of our days.
The New Testament: Readings Matthew 6:25-7:23
Trusting God with all our basic needs Matthew 6:25-34
Jesus is giving a warning against extreme anxiety, and He is not attacking thoughtful planning because thoughtful planning we all should be doing, but living in extreme fear is a lack of faith. Our LORD instructs us that our physical well-being depends on God and only indirectly on food, drink, and clothing. When we live in extreme anxiety over earthly things, we are demonstrating a lack of faith in God's care.
Judging others Matthew 7:1-4:
Please note that we will all be judged with our own level of judgment. This is because we are all guilty of the same things we judge others on (Romans 2:1). We have failed in repentance and fleeing from sin. When we judge others, we assume God's authority, which is not our place.
Dogs and swine refer to heathen peoples (Philippians 3:2, Revelation 22:15). Dogs are those drenched in evil who have no will or hope of change. Swine are those who habitually live immoral and impure lives. The pearls are the mysteries of the Christian faith, which includes the teachings of Christ and the great sacraments (Matthew 13:46). Holy things are to be restricted from the immoral and unrepentant because we are to protect the faithless from further condemnation of themselves (see Luke 23:8-9 as an example).
Matthew 7:7-11:
We ask in prayer, we seek by learning God's truth, meaning we seek the scriptures, and lastly, we knock by doing God's will. Ask, seek, and knock are present progressives, so these verbs are better translated as keep asking, keep seeking, and keep knocking. They are in a continuous state. We see in v. 11 that man is called evil, and this is not to condemn the whole human race but to contrast the imperfect goodness in people with the perfect goodness of God. We are being told that if imperfect and even wicked people can do some good, all the more, God will perfect good.
"The Golden Rule" fulfills the demands of the Law of the Prophets, and we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. This is the first step in spiritual growth.
vv. 13-14: entering the Kingdom of God is not easy for us.
vv. 21-22: We see a threefold testimony of the deity of Christ.
He calls Himself LORD, which refers to the divine name "Yahweh" of the OT. Christ speaks of the will of my Father. He fully knows and shares. Lastly, as judge, Christ is revealed as God, for only God can give proper judgment, "IN THAT DAY" IS REFERRING TO THE FINAL JUDGEMENT.
The Old Testament: Readings Genesis 17:1-18:33
Thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael (16:16), we see the LORD APPEARED TO ABRAM, and he identifies himself as God; he said, "I AM YOUR GOD." The covenant is established "in Christ" (Galatians 3:17). This was established way before the Mosaic Law (Covenant). The Law of Moses came later and can not cancel this one, and the faith of Abraham is multiplied exceedingly in the Church and even today. Abraham is now the father of man nations (see Romans 4:16-17).
In v. 5, the name changed- "Abram" means exalted father. "Abraham" means the father of many.
The God of the everlasting covenant is the Holy Trinity. The rite of circumcision was not the covenant (see vv. 10-14), for it was a sign of the covenant (v. 11). So it was only a temporary sign because it applied only to the genealogy of Abraham (v. 12), meaning to Abraham's physical lineage, and also to those born in his house or those bought with his money. The rite did not belong or apply to the many nations, or gentiles, or even to be made righteous by faith in the gospel (v. 3, see also Romans 4:9-17). Christ fulfilled this rite and brought it to an end when He was circumcised on the eighth day after His birth (Luke 2:21). God's covenant was established in Isaac because the birth of Isaac was based on the promise of God (Romans 9).
Genesis 18
The Hospitality of Abraham vv. 1-8
The Promise of a Son vv. 9-15
Our LORD was not ignorant of Sarah's location. He had always asked questions, and he asked these questions for Abraham's sake and for those who read and search the Scriptures. He asked questions for the same reason when He became Incarnated, for example, concerning the grace of Lazarus (John 11:34).
In Christ, love ❤️ Jared W. Campbell
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