Pearls from the New Testament

Matthew 2 1.  What is the ultimate manifestation of God's love?  It can only be the condescension of God--a son born of a mortal woman.  He then allowed that Son to suffer temptations and pain, be judged of the world and slain for the sins of the world.  It is the willingness of God, the Son, Jesus Christ to die for mankind. 2.  What is the meaning of condescension?   It implies voluntary descent, submission, and performing acts which strict justice does not require.  As such Jesus suffered the infirmities that we do so that he could have mercy and compassion for us and of taking upon himself the sins, painds, transgressions, and sicknesses of men in order to satisfy the demands of justice and gain victory over death and redeeming his people. 3.  How do we apply this act of condescension in our lives?  If Christ can condescend to come to the earth, fulfilling the will of the Father and drawing all men unto Him, then I should surely ...

I decided I wanted to summarize some things I learned in regard to Luke 1 by retelling the story and adding some commentary. Let me start by talking about Herod the Great.   He was at the end of his reign—one filled with terror for many.   He was not a descendant of Israel, meaning Jacob.   Rather he was a descendant of Jacob’s brother Esau.   From the Old Testament we know Esau was an Edomite or an Idumean.   Was there anything redeeming about the man?   He was known for his spectacular building programs.   Beyond that he was better known for his paranoid cruelty.   This led to the execution of many of the members of his family. This is the world in which Zacharias and his wife Elisabeth lived.   They were righteous and obedient, yet also stigmatized by their inability to have a child.   Zacharias according to the custom of the priesthood had the distinct honor of burning incense in the temple.   Only priests of a certain...

I decided to include the answer to the questions I had with the question, this time.  I am a little behind in studying the rest of Luke 1.  But here is what I have for Luke 1:1-25.  I will get right on the rest of the chapter in the next couple of days.  Please make comments to correct any information you may see that is incorrect or to post questions you have that we may research together. 1.      What is the focus or emphasis of Luke's Testimony? The Joseph Smith translation identifies Luke as a “messenger of Christ.”  Matthew emphasized royalty in his testimony, whereas Luke is structured on love and tenderness, especially towards women and children, the poor and dispossessed and most particularly sinners. It is important to realize there were many accounts about Christ circulated at the time which were based on eyewitness testimony, 2.      Was Luke an eyewitness to Christ's ministry?  Luke was not an...

I found this listing at Meridian Magazine. Come, Follow Me For Individuals and Families: Matthew 1; Luke 1 By Kelly Schrum Hutchins Available from other sources: From ‘The Bible Project’: On Matthew—Part 1: an overview of the book of Matthew https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Dv4-n6OYGI I used the one above when I was teaching gospel doctrine--Old Testament.  This is a great overview of a book of the Bible. Her ideas for families are absolutely lovely. Read them at https://ldsmag.com/come-follow-me-for-individuals-and-families-matthew-1-luke-1/

What doctrine do we learn from Matthew 1? 1. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of the family. The family is ordained of God. 2.  The family is the whole point of the gospel.  Our Father in Heaven desires to save His family and to save us as families--the good news of the gospel is that the Atonement of Christ makes that possible. 3. The spiritural blessing of the Atonement of Christ would fulfill the covenant and promise made to Abraham.  Therefore, the promises made to Abraham are also our promises and we can have faith that if the promises made to Abraham will be fulfilled, then the promises made to us will be kept as well. We can have confidence in Jesus Christ. 4. President Russell M. Nelson explains that the Atonement of Christ required a personal sacrifice by an immortal being not subject to death. 5.  God can do His amazing work through us, no matter the circumstances, if we turn our lives over to Him in active, trusting, loyal faith. (Taylor Halvers...

The New Testament can be divided into four sections:   The Gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, John (testimonies of Christ)  Acts (work of the apostles, especially Peter's work among the Jews and Paul's work among the Gentiles) Epistles (letters from Church leaders to the  ancient Saints) Revelation (revelation received by John on the Isle of Patmos) The Prophet Joseph Smith renamed these 4 gospels:  The Testimony of Matthew; The Testimony of Mark; The Testimony of Luke; The Testimony of John.  These are their testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Why are there 4 gospels?   If you have a testimony of Christ, is it the same as the testimony of someone else? Because we each have personal experiences and no one has an experience like the next "feller or gal," we are able to bring to the world a different perspective.  Our life experiences and our stage of life will influence our testimony.  My testimony has changed from when I ...