Andrew vonderLuft

Our Father has this way of doing things contrary to what is expected. Here in Genesis 48.13-20 Israel blesses Ephraim the younger son ahead of Manasseh the elder. God chose Isaac to be the son of promise, not his older brother Ishmael. Israel himself, as Jacob, become the heir of the promise of Abraham and Isaac, not his older brother Esau. Later on Gideon who was “least in his father’s house” is chosen to be the deliverer of Israel. And of course there is David, the youngest and “least” of Jesse’s sons, but who out of all his older brothers was the man after God’s own heart. And then there is you and me.

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. (1 Cor. 1:26-29)

@anya.vonderluft - I think that’s a good place to start. But it extends also to those who are poor in this world’s goods. Think of the rich man and Lazarus. The poor are those whose treasures are not here on earth, but in Heaven. Consider Luke’s account of the Beatitudes 2 chapters on in Luke 6.20-26

In Numbers 6.24-26 the LORD gave these words to the Aaronic priests to bless God’s people and to put His name upon them. In Jesus Christ we are all His priests, a “royal priesthood” as Peter says. So as a holy priest to God, speak this blessing over your loved ones, over yourself, over your brothers and sisters.

These are very good questions. Here are my initial thoughts. When Jesus says 'you are the salt of the earth,' He is speaking about the life of the new man in the Holy Spirit which has those same qualities that salt has: it preserves things from going rotten, it promotes healing, and it makes things tasty. This is what the Christian is to be in the world.

As for the connection between fire and that salt, I think the fire is the trials and difficulties we go through, which form Christ in us more and more. So as we submit to the fires of tribulation and allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in us, we become more "salty", i.e. more beneficial to the world around us.

The testing by fire which Paul speaks of in 1 Cor. 3, he says is to reveal the quality of each one's work at the end. So this fire is not so much formative, but more final, to show how much we allowed God to form Christ in us through the troubles we endured in our lives.

Exodus 29.37 “whatever touches the altar shall be holy” Pondering that in the light of Romans 12.1 “present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice…” When we lay ourselves on the altar, He makes us holy, set apart for Him.

@anya I think in context the cup and baptism are both referring to His sufferings. And Peter and Paul show and say that we partake in His sufferings as His followers.

@johannes - YLT is now an option in your Profile.

Genesis 22, known as "the binding of Isaac" - verse 8 “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” אֱלֹהִ֞ים יִרְאֶה־לּ֥וֹ הַשֶּׂ֛ה The Hebrew is ambiguous - it can mean "God will provide for Himself the lamb", but it can also mean "God will provide Himself - (as) the Lamb." I believe the Holy Spirit is conveying both!

And it is here on Mount Moriah where the temple will be built, whose sacrifices will point forward to the "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of world."

@johannes - I think Philip Schaff, and others who have researched this have speculated that it might have been a conjunction of planets. But that it stood over the house does seems to suggest that it was outside of the normal order of celestial events.

@johannes - I had never noticed that connection between Abel's vocation, and Cain's response. In Hebrew they are 2 different words...translations again.

@anya thanks for the good and encouraging word!

@johannes - This is such a good point! Even though Matthew was writing mainly to Jews to show them that Jesus is their Messiah and King, from the very beginning he shows that the Messiah is not just for an elite group of Abraham's physical descendants, but for all people, the poor, the needy, the outcast, just as God promised Abraham, "in you and in your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed." Matthew is intentionally rocking their boat -- Ruth wasn't even a Jew, but a despised Moabite! Jesus came to seek and save all who are lost. Thanks for this key insight -- you're right, it is very significant.

@johannes - These are great questions! "what would we have become?" - Yes, I believe the trees did have real power. By eating of the forbidden tree we came to know good and evil, but in a fallen state, like Satan, but unlike him, mortal. If we had taken of the tree of life, then we would have become immortal in that fallen state, like Satan, a truly terrible outcome. God in His mercy prevented that, and had a plan in place for our ultimate redemption!

Yes I believe the "us" refers to the eternal fellowship of the Triune Godhead, likewise in Genesis 11.

@johannes - Thank you for your thoughts. For translations, in your Profile (top nav), you can select your preferred version, if you're reading on a device. No translation is perfect, but the most literal are the LSB and the NASB. I've read the former, and am currently reading (again) the latter.