Matt 22

Date: 27 January 2009 D – 15 days

Events:

Yesterday, Marla worked in the morning while I read and wrote. We met for lunch at Papa Sito’s and her partner Meredith joined us. It took me all afternoon to pack up all of my gear. Today is the last trip to Fort Hood that I will make before leaving so I have all of my junk packed up and gear put together for a PCI (pre-combat inspection) tomorrow. I thought packing would be much more depressing than it turned out to be (probably because we still have 2 weeks); I listened to a mix of Stained and Bruce Springsteen and sorted through a lot of cool gear. The Gear that we get issued is amazing, from the infra-red beacon (avoid friendly fire), to the seat belt cutters, to the camel back, it is all brand new top notch stuff. So, far from being depressing I think playing while I packed emotionally prepared me for deployment. After I finished packing, I took Sadie for a long run in the Park. We made salmon last night and watched the Bachelor. Yesterday was a great day.

Bible (NT/OT):

Matt 22

The Parable of the Wedding Feast

22 And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, 2 "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, 3 and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. 4 Again he sent other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.' 5 But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, 6 while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. 7 The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.' 10 And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 "But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. 12 And he said to him, 'Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 For many are called, but few are chosen."

Paying Taxes to Caesar

15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his talk. 16 And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, "Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin for the tax." And they brought him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" 21 They said, "Caesar's." Then he said to them, "Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." 22 When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.

Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

23 The same day Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked

him a question, 24 saying, "Teacher, Moses said, 'If a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.' 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother. 26 So too the second and third, down to the seventh. 27 After them all, the woman died. 28 In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her."
29 But Jesus answered them, "You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 31 And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God:
32 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not God of the dead, but of the living." 33 And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.

The Great Commandment

34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" 37 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."

Whose Son Is the Christ?

41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying,

"What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" They said to him, "The son of David." 43 He said to them, "How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,
44 "'The Lord said to my Lord,Sit at my right hand,until I put your enemies under your feet'?
45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?" 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

Ps 23:4

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Ps 23:6-24:1
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Bible Thoughts:

1. 7 The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.' The Old Testament hard-hearted Jews (not true Israel, a Jewish remnant that believed Gods promise and subsequently believed in Christ) the Pharisees and Sadducees are symbolized by the first guests who did not show up and ultimately murdered the King’s servants (Old Testament Prophets). God, the King, justly punishes their disloyalty. In this parable, the king then opens his doors to strangers…10 And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests. These symbolize the Gentiles (you and I) who have been welcomed into the promise that had thus far been given only to Israel. As Paul says in Rom 11:11-12 “Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!”
2. And he said to him, 'Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. The Guests had all just seconds before been brought in off the street, so how could the King discipline this poor beggar for not being dressed for the wedding? If all of the other guests have wedding garments then we must assume that the King has given the garments. This would be consistent in a broader sense with our understanding of the Gospel and our ability to sit at the Feast of the Lamb (after death) as clothed in Christ’s righteousness not in our own filth. This understanding is also consistant with the refaine that follows, “many are called but few are chosen.”
3. 14 For many are called, but few are chosen." This is the second time we have encountered this verse. The first usage was in Matthew 20:16 after Christ’s parable of the Laborers. As this phrase is one of the few that Christ repeats, it must be important. In the Parable of the Laborers God is depicted as a generous landowner who pays the workers hired at the last hour the same wage as those hired in the first. In the Parable at hand, God is depicted as a King who tortures his unfaithful subjects and brings in, dresses, and feasts with strangers. The commonality between the two parables is God’s ability to do what he wishes despite man’s effort or will. The “call” Christ refers to is a “general call” referring to all who hear the gospel (all who were invited to work/wedding). There is also an “effectual call,” an internal call that is irresistible (those workers/attendants that were brought in by the landowner/King). Thus the general call goes out to the world but only those who are effectually called truly respond and believe. As Luke says in Acts, “48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.” Acts 13:48-49. The appointment and effectual call occur then we respond with belief. Many argue the Doctrine of Election/Predestination by saying that all are chosen but with free will, some of these chosen deny the gospel, I argue with this verse, “few are chosen.” Unless we deny the truth of this verse all are not chosen, all are not invited. People all have the freedom to follow their will, their will, however, is unable to follow Christ without God’s supernatural effectual call.
4. The following two questions are posed by the Pharisees and Sadducees to trip Jesus up. The first ends, “ 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" The Jews were under the rule of Rome. Most resented Rome as an occupying force and resented the Tax that they had to pay to Rome because they were funding the occupier. Thus, if Jesus answers that we are obligated to pay the tax he would have been seen as a traitor to the Jews and if he would have denied the tax he would have been broken the law. His response, “give to Cesar what is Cesar’s” is simple but effective because he plays on a feeling amongst the Jews that the picture of a glorified Cesar the Golden coin had become an Idol. In this way he kept the law and, far from being seen as a traitor to the Jews, was seen as a hero for casting out Cesar’s idolatrous image. The following question from the Sadducees, “28 In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her." Christ likewise answers. The Sadducees were a sect that altogether denied the resurrection. Jesus however not only affirms the resurrection but support’s it with the very words of God in Genesis that no Jew could deny. Christ demonstrates a profound knowledge of scripture that would not have been available to any mere carpenter
6. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Truly, the entire law can be summed up into these two simple commandments. Many a spiritual Californian will quote this verse as support free, abundant love is all that it takes to get to heaven. We must however remember the true purpose of the law. The law was never meant to Justify, the law was meant to demonstrate our need. Much as I use an MRI do diagnose physical illness, the law diagnoses spiritual illness. How many of us can say that we have always loved god and our neighbor first? How many of us can say that we have ever loved God and our neighbor first? Thus, the law is not the good news. The Good News (Gospel) is that God knows the state of our hearts and in love has made righteousness available to us through the righteousness of his Son and has paid the penalty of our sins through the brutal punishment of his Son. That the promise of the psalms, “6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever,” is now as true for us as it was for Jesus.

Sun Tzu:

The one who figures on victory at headquarters before even doing battle is the one who has the most strategic factors on his side. The one who figures on inability to prevail at headquarters is the one who has the least strategic factors on his side. The one with many strategic factors in his favor wins. Observing the matter in this way, you can see who will win and who will lose.

Sun Tzu Thoughts: Simple concept, but in today’s world I would use it to support the power of positive thinking. There is a recent book that has become quite popular entitled, The Secrete. I have not read it but I listened to an interview with the author and his faithful followers. In The Secrete and existential view that reality is somehow altered by our positive or negative thoughts is put forth. For example, if I think hard enough, I can bring a star into existence or (for Oprah’s audience) my future spouse to my doorstep. This of course is utter nonsense. While advertised as “new and revolutionary” the fallacy is as old as humanity, as Solomon said, “there is nothing new under the sun.” While I entirely disagree with the philosophy that underlies the book, I do feel that the confidence that comes from positive thinking give a strategic advantage in business or in conflict.

The Intellectual Devotion (Kidder, D. & Oppenheim N. The Intellectual Devotion, Rodale. NY, NY 2006):

Medieval/Early Church Music (400-1400AD), Gragorian Chant was the first written music. Also known as “plainchant” it was sung during the Catholic Mass. The Mass was devided into two sets of Chant, the Ordinarry and the Proper. The ordinary consisted of 6t latin prayers (Kyrie Eleison, Gloria in Excelsis, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei and Ite Missa est) which always contained the same text; whereas the Proper which included the Introit, Gradual, Offertory, and Communion, consisted of texts that varied according to liturgical season. Medieval music began as monophonic (no harmony), but around 900AD, musicians began to write in a polymorphic style called organum (2 parallel melodies) and in 1100AD composers Leonin and Perotin (music directors at Notre Dame in Paris), composed organa with up to 4 independent, nonparallel music lines. Eventually in the thirteenth century “Motet” emerged, which is complex polymorphic with a fixed melodic line and several complementary parts. In the 1990’s the Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos released a CD called Chant that made plainchant popular for the first time since the Middle Ages.

Intellectual Devo Thoughts: Good stuff very relaxing, it was always a bit creepy to me but now that I know the origin, I’m going to download Chant when I finish.