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Suggestions for individuals, small group members, and small group leaders. Previous Next Jubilee Year 2025: Embrace God’s Hope and Extend It to All Overview: How to Use This Study Guide Suggestions for individuals, small group members, and small group leaders. Link to S pes Non Confundit Photo by Tom Faletti, descending toward Berlin, Germany, June 20, 2024. Tom Faletti November 16, 2024 This page has separate suggestions for how to use this study guide for individuals studying on their own, small group members, and small group leaders. Click the appropriate link below: Individuals studying on their own Small group members Small group leaders Individuals studying on their own This study guide walks through Pope Francis's document Spes Non Confundit paragraph by paragraph so that you can engage with it personally and apply it to your life. The guide presents questions that will help you explore Pope Francis’s insights, the Scripture passages he cites, and additional Bible passages that support his points where his document does not explicitly cite Scripture. The guide also suggests activities that might help you put your discoveries into action. You can also be creative in coming up with your own activities. This study guide assumes that you will read the specified portions of Spes Non Confundit before trying to answer the corresponding questions. The document can be accessed online (and printed out, if desired) here: Spes Non Confundit . In this online study guide, there is a link to that document at the top right corner of every page. You can read the Bible passages as you go. It is not expected that you will engage every question with equal intensity. The goal is not to answer every question like a checklist. The goal is to hear what Pope Francis and the Scriptures are saying and then to dig in where God is calling you to new insights and action. When a question asks you to restate what Pope Francis or the Bible says, it helps to check yourself against the actual passage, to make sure you are interpreting accurately. Please give yourself plenty of time for the application questions that speak to your heart at this particular time in your life. Listen for what God is saying to you, and respond. If at the end of a session you have a clear sense of what new insight or action God is calling you to, you are on the right track. Small group members This study guide walks through Pope Francis's document Spes Non Confundit paragraph by paragraph so that we can engage with it personally and communally and apply it to our lives. The guide presents questions that will help your group explore Pope Francis’s insights, the Scripture passages he cites, and additional Bible passages that support his points where his document does not explicitly cite Scripture. The guide also suggests activities that might help you put your discoveries into action. You can also be creative in coming up with your own activities. Although anyone can explore these questions on their own, God can work powerfully when people come together with an open heart and a willingness to share their experiences, learn from others, and explore how God is calling them to action in their everyday lives. This study guide assumes that the group has agreed to read in advance the specified portions of Spes Non Confundit for each session. The document can be accessed here: Spes Non Confundit . In this online study guide, there is a link to that document at the top right corner of every page. Group members may read the Bible passages in advance but are not expected to do so. The study guide indicates when to read the Bible passages. You may access the Bible online or use your own Bible (use your Bible’s Table of Contents to find passages quickly). Groups will not have time to discuss all the provided questions. Group leaders will need to make choices about where to focus based on the direction of the conversation. Help your leaders cover the main points and allow plenty of time for the application questions, without feeling an obligation to cover everything. Let your leaders know in advance if there are particular questions or paragraphs of the document that you are especially interested in discussing. Help the group find the new insights or actions God is calling you to. Small group leaders This study guide walks through Pope Francis's document Spes Non Confundit paragraph by paragraph so that we can engage with it personally and communally and apply it to our lives. The guide presents questions that will help your group explore Pope Francis’s insights, the Scripture passages he cites, and additional Bible passages that support his points where his document does not explicitly cite Scripture. The guide also suggests activities that might help you put your discoveries into action. You can also be creative in coming up with your own activities. Although anyone can explore these questions on their own, God can work powerfully when people come together with an open heart and a willingness to share their experiences, learn from others, and explore how God is calling them to action in their everyday lives. This study guide assumes that the group has agreed to read in advance the specified portions of Spes Non Confundit for each session. Spes Non Confundit can be accessed online (and printed out, if desired) here: Spes Non Confundit . In this online study guide, there is a link to that document at the top right corner of every page. Group members may read the Bible passages in advance but are not expected to do so. The study guide indicates when to read the Bible passages. Group members may access the Bible online or use their own Bible (encourage them to use their Bible’s Table of Contents to find passages quickly). Who can lead: Because a full set of discussion questions is provided here, almost anyone can facilitate a small group on Spes Non Confundit . If you believe in Jesus, are willing to do a small amount of preparation in advance, have an open heart, and have an awareness of social dynamics, you can be a small group leader. For additional support, you can find leadership training materials at Leading a Small-Group Bible Study . Questions in bold are questions a leader can pose directly to the group. Other useful background information is presented in regular font. What to focus on: Groups will not have time to discuss all the provided questions. Group leaders should make choices about where to focus based on the direction of the conversation. Try to cover the main points and allow plenty of time for the application questions, without feeling an obligation to cover everything. Encourage members to let you know in advance if there are particular questions or paragraphs of the document that they are especially interested in discussing. Help the group find the new insights or actions God is calling you to. Bibliography See Jubilee Year 2025 - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/jubilee-2025/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. 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Jesus fulfills the Old Testament: the Law and the Prophets. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus fulfills the Old Testament: the Law and the Prophets. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti April 26, 2024 Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus came to fulfill the Law What does Jesus say in verse 17? Jesus refers to “the law and the prophets.” The law and the prophets are two of the three divisions of the Hebrew Bible, our Old Testament. The “law” is the Torah, the first 5 books of the Old Testament. The “prophets” refers to the books of the prophets – Isaiah, etc. The third division of the Hebrew Bible is the “writings” – which includes the Psalms and other books of literature (Proverbs, etc.) that are grouped with the Psalms in the Hebrew Bible. In Matthew, Jesus uses the phrase “the law and the prophets” here and in three other places: Matthew 7:12; 11:13; and 22:40. In 7:12, he says that the “Golden Rule” – do unto others as you would have them do unto you – is the law and the prophets. In 22:40, after talking about the two Great Commandments – love the Lord our God and love your neighbor – he says that all that is written in the law and the prophets hangs on these two commandments. Jesus says he did not come to “abolish” the law and the prophets. What would it mean to “abolish” them? And therefore, what does it mean to not abolish them? What does it mean to “fulfill” the law and the prophets? To “fulfill” means to “complete,” or to bring to completion, or to have reached the point of completion. To “fulfill” the law and the prophets can be explored in two ways: How the law is fulfilled as we follow the moral law first outlined in the Old Testament; and How Jesus , by his life, death, and resurrection, fulfilled the purposes and promises of God presented in the Old Testament. With regard to Jesus, it is useful to note that in Luke 24:44, Jesus said that “everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled” (NRSV). There, he is referring to all three divisions of the Hebrew Scriptures. With regard to how the law applies to us, the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible comments that the New Covenant Jesus presented “perfects and transforms” the Old Covenant: “While sacrificial laws of the OT expired with the sacrifice of Jesus, the moral Law (Ten Commandments, etc.) was retained and refined” (fn. to 5:17, p. 15). In the next section of Matthew’s Gospel, we see Jesus transforming the teachings of the Old Testament in ways that we still try to follow today. In what ways do we continue to follow the commandments of the Old Testament and embrace the teachings of the prophets? How does our commitment to following the law allow the law to fulfill its intended purpose? In what ways did Jesus fulfill the law and the prophets? Some scholars argue that this teaching in Matthew contradicts what Paul says when he says that we are not justified by doing the works of the law (for example, in Galatians 2:15-16; Romans 3:21-31). How would you respond? Is Jesus saying we are justified by doing the works of the Law? Is Paul saying we don’t have to obey the basic commandments of the Law? Or do these passages of the Bible fit together even though they may be looking at the issue from different perspectives? Some scholars overstate Paul’s rejection of the Law. Paul affirmatively cites the Ten Commandments in Romans 13:8-10 and says they are summed up in the command to love your neighbor, as Jesus said in Matthew. And throughout his letters, Paul expects a high moral standard of the people to whom he is writing. We are not justified by doing the works of the law – we still need salvation through Jesus; but Jesus expects us to follow the Ten Commandments and also other elements of the moral/social law – for example, to care for the poor, treat workers justly, welcome the stranger, etc. In verse 18, Jesus says that not one letter of the law will pass away. The word for “letter” is literally the Greek word iota – their name for the letter “i,” which is the smallest letter in Greek as it is in English. It is important to note that Jesus is not endorsing all the tiny details of the interpretations of the Law that the scribes and Pharisees had piled on top of the actual words of the Old Testament Law. He broke their "laws" frequently and derided them for their excessive devotion to the laws they had made. But he is expressing a deep reverence for the word of God handed down in the Old Testament itself. Jesus’s reference to heaven and earth passing away may be recalling Isaiah’s prophecy of a “new heavens and a new earth” (Isaiah 65:17, NRSV and NABRE). In Matthew 5:18, Jesus says that nothing will “pass” from the law “until all is accomplished.” This could be interpreted as referring to the “eschatological” end of the world (the “end times”), but it makes more sense to understand it as referring to Jesus’s fulfillment of the law and the prophets by his death and resurrection. Jesus has already preached that the kingdom of heaven is near. In what ways are we living, metaphorically or partially, in the “new heavens and new earth” that Isaiah foretold, even as we wait for its complete fulfillment at an end time that is yet to come? In what ways do the law and prophets still apply to us in this interim time we live in? Given that Christians do not accept the obligation to carry out all 613 commandments in the Old Testament – for example, we do not follow the kosher laws, the sacrificial laws, or other ceremonial laws – how do we know which laws Jesus still expects us to follow today? Notice in verse 19 that Jesus does not consign to hell those who break the commandments, but he says they will be called “least” in the kingdom of heaven. What do you think this means? What might “least” look like in heaven? Verse 19 particularly makes a point about teachers. Why are they so important? Jesus ends this passage with a statement that would have been a surprise to his followers. The scribes and Pharisees sought to live at an extreme or maximum level of righteousness. What does Jesus say in verse 20? What do you think Jesus is telling you, in saying that your righteousness must be greater than that of the people who are trying the hardest to be righteousness? For you, what is the good news in this passage? Take a step back and consider this: If the Law was a sentient being, you might picture it eagerly anticipating its “fulfillment.” It was created for a purpose – to prepare the way for Jesus and the salvation of not only the Jewish people but all of humanity. Now, in Jesus, the beginning of that time of fulfillment is at hand. We, too, are on a path to fulfillment. God is working his character into us and reflecting his goodness and love out through us to a world that desperately needs opportunities to see God through us. In the end, our goal is to allow God to work his character fully into us so that we are like Jesus. I can’t be exhibiting God’s character and manifesting God’s love if I am insulting, unfaithful, hateful, etc. – issues that Jesus will take up in the next passage. Those attitudes do not reflect the image of God because God does not have those attitudes. If my ultimate fulfillment is to be like Christ, then those attitudes must go. The moral law set forth in the Old Testament, however, does reflect aspects of God’s character. The Law helps me understand, in some ways, the kind of person God is calling me to be. For you, is the Law a bad guy that prohibits you from doing what you want to do and being what you want to be? Or is it a good thing that reminds you of what you want to do and who you want to be? How does the Law help you to live the life of Christ? How can you embrace more fully this vision: that the Law, which is fulfilled in Christ, is not something to be abolished but rather is a support for your life of faith that can help you reach your ultimate fulfillment in Christ? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

How many times must I forgive someone who does something wrong to me over and over again?  How is God a model for the answer? Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 18:21-35 How many times must I forgive someone who does something wrong to me over and over again? How is God a model for the answer? Lawrence W. Ladd (fl. 1865–1895). Parable of the King and His Servants . Circa 1880. Cropped. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC. Public domain, via Smithsonian American Art Museum, https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/parable-king-and-his-servants-14161 . Tom Faletti June 29, 2025 Matthew 18:21-35 Forgiving others; giving and receiving mercy In this parable, Jesus tells a story that has multiple layers. But it starts with a question from Peter. What does Peter ask Jesus and what is he really a sking? Let’s remember the context for this parable. In the previous passage, Jesus has just said that if your brother sins against you, you should approach your brother about it; and if your brother listens to you, you will have regained a brother. But Peter is thinking ahead. He is saying to himself: Suppose my brother apologizes and admits he was wrong, and I forgive him; but then he goes and does it again. How many times do I have to forgive him? What is Jesus’s initial answer? Jesus says either 77 times or 70-times-7 times, signaling a number larger than one would try to count: an unlimited number of times. Here is why scholars disagree as to whether Jesus said (70 plus 7) times or (70 times 7) times. In English, we have a word for two times (twice) and a word for 3 times (thrice), but we don’t have words beyond that. In Greek, there is a word formation that can be used for any number: five-times, seven-times, ten-times, etc. Peter uses that word formation to ask, Seven-times? Jesus uses the same word formation with seventy (seventy-times) and then follows it with the word seven. So in the Greek, Jesus’s answer is: Not seven-times, but seventy-times seven. Is “seventy-times seven” equivalent to our “seventy-seven” (i.e., seventy and seven, 77)? Or is it equivalent to our seventy times seven (490)? Scholars don’t agree on the answer. But the specific number isn’t the point. The key is that it is a large number. How do you think Jesus wants Peter to interpret Jesus’s answer? Is he saying Peter can count 77 times (or 490 times) and then stop forgiving, or is he saying something else? What is the point of Jesus’s answer? Jesus may be remembering an exchange in Genesis 4:23-24. In Genesis 4:15, God says, “If anyone kills Cain, vengeance will be taken against him sevenfold” or “seven times as much.” In 4:24, Lamech says, “If Cain is avenged sevenfold, / then Lamech [will be avenged] seventy-sevenfold.” The Jews did not have a word for infinity, and seven was seen as a number representing perfection, so seventy-seven might have suggested double-perfection, unlimited perfection – or in this case, unlimited revenge. Jesus turns it on its head, using the concept of seventy-seven for unlimited forgiveness. What does this exchange say to us? What does it say to the church? This interaction between Peter and Jesus follows immediately after the instructions about how to deal with someone in the church who is doing something wrong, and the giving of the binding and loosing power to the church. How are the previous passages and this passage related? Jesus tells a parable to bring his point to life, and he chooses numbers that make it extreme. We miss his extreme exaggeration in the translations. What happens in the first part of the parable? What does the king do, what does the slave request, and how does the king respond? Although many translations say “servant,” Matthew uses the Greek word for a slave ( doulos ), not the word for a servant ( diakonos ). At the time of Christ, perhaps 20% or more of all the people in the Roman Empire were slaves. Slaves in the Roman Empire often performed very high-level jobs with a great deal of responsibility, unlike the situation in the American and European colonial slavery systems. In the second part of the parable, what does the slave do, what does the fellow slave request, and how does the first slave respond? In a parable, the key elements of the story stand for something else of a spiritual nature. Parables often use an everyday human situation as a metaphor for a spiritual truth about God or God’s interaction with people. In this parable, who does the king represent? Jesus tells this parable when Peter asks how many times he must forgive someone. Matthew is trying to use Jesus’s teachings to guide his community in how it should handle conflicts. Considering that context, who does the first slave stand for? In our own lives, who does the first slave stand for? The slave owes 10,000 talents. A talent was worth 6,000 denarii, where a denarius was roughly a day’s wage for a laborer ( The New Oxford Annotated Bible , Matt. 18:24 fn., p. 1773). This means that the value of one talent was the value of nearly 20 years of wages for a common laborer or soldier. If we translate that value to our time, the value of one talent, translated to the wages of low-skilled workers in the United States today, would be somewhere between $275,000 and $600,000 (as of 2025; the range is so wide because different jurisdictions have widely varying minimum wages). But this slave owed 10,000 talents . That is a sum of money comparable to something like $5 billion today. How does the meaning of this story change when you understand that the first slave owed $5 billion in today’s economic terms and was forgiven? What does the forgiveness of such an enormous sum say to us? The second slave owed 100 denarii. A denarius was the standard wage for a day’s work for a common laborer ( The New Oxford Annotated Bible , Matt. 18:28 fn., p. 1773). In terms of the minimum wage scale in the United States in 2025, 100 denarii would be somewhere between $5,800 and $12,000. The second slave owed something like $10,000 in today’s economic terms. When you understand that, you realize that the debt was not trivial, even though it was tiny compared to the first slave’s debt. What does the king expect the first slave to do, when he is owed $10,000? Now remember the context for this parable: Jesus is talking about forgiving others who have hurt us. Even when the offense is big, what is he telling Peter and us to do? According to the parable, why should we forgive others? What happens to the first slave? What do his fellow slaves do, and what does his master do? Recall from our work in Matthew 13:1-23 that there is a difference between a parable and an allegory: “A parable is not an allegory; an allegory is a story in which every possible detail has an inner meaning; but an allegory has to be read and studied : a parable is heard . We must be very careful not to make allegories of the parables, but to remember that they were designed to make one stabbing truth flash out at a man the moment he heard it” (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 2 , p. 63). This parable is not a theological exposition on how God judges people. Jesus is describing what an ordinary, human, perhaps cruel and sinful king would do. In that human scenario of a king, the slave might be tortured for two reasons: to get the truth out of him as to where he is hiding the money he claims he does not have; and perhaps to extort payment from family members who would not want their loved one tortured. God doesn’t act like that. But we have to ask: How do you think God deals with people who fail to show mercy, and why? Why might it be impossible to live with God in heaven if you do not forgive others? How is forgiveness a fundamental characteristic of God, making it impossible to be like him and live with him if we lack that characteristic? Are there other Scriptures that echo this teaching that God does not forgive those who do not forgive others? Yes. Consider these passages: Matthew 6:12,14-15 (forgive us our trespasses; if you do not forgive, neither will your Father). Matthew 7:1-2 (with the judgment you make, you will be judged). Mark 11:25 (when you stand praying, forgive, so that your Father may forgive you). Luke 6:37-38 (forgive and you will be forgiven; with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you). James 2:13 (judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy). Read these passages on forgiveness. Why does God care so much about whether we are merciful and forgiving? We are called to be like God, and he is merciful and forgiving. We owe God a big debt that he has chosen to forgive. Yet we are often harsh and unforgiving toward those who sin against us, as the slave is harsh and unforgiving toward those who owe him money. God wants us to be like him. In Matt. 18:35, Jesus tells us to forgive “from the heart.” What do those extra words “from the heart” mean, and why are they important? When have you forgiven someone who has hurt you, when it might have been difficult? How did it happen? What difference did it make? What does this parable suggest about how we should deal with those who sin against us? What is this passage calling you to do differently, or how is it calling you to think in a different way? Now let’s connect this parable to the previous passage about dealing with someone who has done something wrong to us. If we take this parable to heart and apply it to the cases where we have been sinned against, how often would we be likely to take an offender before the entire local Christian community? How would Jesus want us to deal with situations where we think someone has done something wrong to us? Consider again Peter’s original question: How many times must I forgive someone who sins against me? What do you think Jesus’s response is? Take a step back and consider this: Just because a person is a Christian doesn’t mean they find it easy to take Jesus’s teachings about forgiveness to heart. According to a survey of Christians conducted by the Barna Group in 2019, 27% of practicing Christians can identify someone who they don’t want to forgive, and 23% can identify a person they can’t forgive ( Barna Group ). The offenses against them may have been great, so I am not judging them. Yet forgiveness appears to be a fundamental attribute of God that he wants us to embrace. For many people, merely receiving a command from God to forgive does not make it easy to do so. Perhaps we can become more like God in this attribute if we try to think like God and be like God all the time, not just when we hit a point where it is difficult to forgive. It might also help if we can see the invitation to be like God as a great privilege, rather than as an order or a requirement that we must fulfill in order to be forgiven or to get to heaven. God has sent each of us a personal invitation to be like him and to receive his Spirit to empower us so that we can think, speak, and act in ways that are in accord with his character. It is a gift to get to be part of Team Jesus: the people who are invited to live, moment by moment, in the presence of God. How can we embrace that opportunity more fully? How does it feel to be invited to live a life that is always united with God? Is there someone you struggle to forgive? How would Jesus like to help you forgive that person? What is one step you can take to allow God to further transform your mind and heart so that you are more like him in everything you think, say, and do? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Paul’s concern for the Thessalonians is like the love of a mother or father for their children. [1 Thessalonians 2:1-12; 2:13-16] Previous 1 Thess. List Next 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16 Paul’s concern for the Thessalonians is like the love of a mother or father for their children. Image from Wix. Tom Faletti January 26, 2025 1 Thess. 2:1-12 Paul describes his ministry among the Thessalonians In chapter 1, Paul focused on the Thessalonians. In chapter 2, he turns the camera around and focuses on himself: What was he doing as he was ministering to them? What is your overall sense of Paul’s character, based on his self-description here? How would you describe him to someone who did not know him? Verses 1-7 Paul’s motivations are like that of a nursing mother In the first two verses, Paul recalls that when he came to Thessalonica, he had been severely beaten in Philippi. And then he encountered swift opposition in Thessalonica. What sustains him? Where does he get the courage or boldness to continue preaching? We don’t face the kind of opposition Paul did, but many of us hesitate to talk about our faith with others. Why is that? How can you draw courage from God to speak boldly about the good news of knowing Jesus? In verses 3-6, Paul offers a list of negatives where he describes many things that his preaching was not . In compiling this list of false motivations, Paul may be responding to charges that were leveled against him by those who opposed him, or he may be defending the gospel of Christ more generally. In verses 3-6, Paul lists a series of false motivations that are not the reason for his preaching. What is the meaning of each of these false motivations? His preaching was not motivated by what? Not from delusion/deceit/error (v. 3). In other words, his message was not factually false; he was speaking the truth. Not from impure motives (v. 3). He wasn’t trying to secretly get something for himself. Not from deception/trickery (v. 3). He was not withholding information to trick them. Not to please humans (v. 4). He wasn’t doing it so that they would feel good about him. Not with flattery (v. 5). He wasn’t giving them false praise in order to get something from them. Not as a pretext for greed (v. 5). He wasn’t trying to get rich off of them. Not seeking praise from them or others (v. 6). He wasn’t doing it for glory or to gain popularity or acclaim. Tucked in the middle of this list of negatives that his gospel was not , Paul identifies the one motivation that governed his preaching (verse 4). What was his motivation? To please God. This list of good and bad motivations is useful not just for evaluating our “preaching”; it can be used to evaluate everything we do in our lives. What are we called to have as our one true motivation in life, and how does it look when we are living that way? When we seek to please God as our sole motivation, then we (do what?). Which of the false motivations Paul lists is a risk for you as you live your life in a world that does not always share your faith and values? What can you do to keep your motivations pure? We see in our own times how people disparage those they disagree with and use unsubstantiated charges to try to destroy them. What can we do when we or others we know are falsely attacked? Paul notes that as apostles, he and his companions could have made demands (not that making demands of people who are just getting to know you gets you very far, but he could have tried that). But that is not how he approached them. Paul describes himself as being like a nursing mother. What do you think this looked like in practice? How can you be “like a mother” in your approach to people in your community, your workplace, your online presence, your church, your family? Verses 8-12 Paul’s behavior is like a father with his children In verse 8, Paul says that he and his companions shared “not only the gospel of God, but our very selves as well” (1 Thess. 2:8, NABRE). What is his reason for why they did that (verse 8)? How does sharing your whole self enhance the message you are trying to communicate? We tend to want to share only the good things about ourselves, and not our whole selves. How might being more vulnerable strengthen our relationships? Also, how might this kind of openness strengthen our effectiveness in sharing the gospel? What does verse 9 tell you about Paul’s work ethic? Why might it have been important to work for his keep and not expect the Thessalonians to meet his basic needs? In verse 10, Paul describes his personal conduct and behavior. How did he act among the Thessalonians? In verses 11-12, Paul compares his behavior to that of a father with his children. In what ways was he like a father? How can you be “like a father” in the sense Paul means it, in your approach to people in your community, your workplace, your online presence, your church, your family? 1 Thess. 2:13-16 Paul gives further thanks, and digresses Paul here returns to his early theme of thanksgiving (1:2-10). Why is he thankful? Judea is the portion of the former kingdom of the Jews that included the region around Jerusalem. In verse 14, how have the Thessalonians become imitators of the churches of God in Judea? The Christians in the churches in Judea suffered persecution from their fellow Jews – recall the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7:54-8:2) and the persecution under Herod in which James, the brother of John, was killed (Acts 12:1-5). Similarly, Paul says, the Thessalonians suffered persecution from their fellow Thessalonians (although this came also from Jews even though the Thessalonian church was largely Gentile). At this point, Paul digresses to talk about the persecutions that some Jews were fomenting in his time. Because the tone suddenly becomes so harsh, some scholars argue that this was inserted later and not written by Paul. They point out that Paul was a Jew and held out fervent hope that the Jews would be saved. In Romans 9:3 he says he would undergo separation from Christ if it would bring his fellow Jews to Christ. In Romans 11:26, he asserts that “all Israel will be saved” (NRSV, NABRE, and other translations). Furthermore, this is the only place that Paul attributes the crucifixion to the Jews. For example, in 1 Corinthians 2:8, he says that “the rulers of this age” crucified the Lord. We might see this as Paul getting worked up and angry because of the mistreatment that he and these Thessalonians he loved had suffered at the hands of some Jews. An analogy might be a White person writing angrily about what “the Whites” did to African Americans in the South over the course of 300+ years of enslavement and oppression. Referring generically to “the Whites” would not mean all White people, only those who were directly responsible. Similarly, Paul’s denunciation of “the Jews” would not apply to all Jews. Verses 15-16 have been misinterpreted throughout the centuries to foment persecution against the Jewish people. Is Paul speaking about any Jews other than those who were persecuting Christians at that time he was writing? No. Paul’s words are directed only at those of his time who were persecuting Christians. This is not a statement about any Jews at any other time in history and should not be used to criticize or harass Jews in our time. Misusing this passage to justify attacks against Jews is a sign of anti-Semitism. We have seen previously the word “wrath” that appears in verse 16. It is Jewish shorthand for the final judgment of God. In verse 16, when Paul says that the wrath or judgment of God has (already) come, his specific meaning is unclear. There are several possibilities: He could be speaking apocalyptically about what Paul thinks is coming soon. He could be thinking of some specific event that had already happened shortly before he wrote the letter. In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , Raymond F. Collins indicates that Paul could have been referring to “any of a number of tumultuous events about AD 49: the famine, the edict of Claudius expelling Jews from Rome, the massacre in the Temple courts at Passover” (Collins, “1 Thessalonians,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , par. 23, p. 776). He could be thinking about the idea that embracing evil means that a person is already living in a state of anticipatory judgment. As the footnotes to the NABRE put it: “Sinful conduct (1 Thes 2:16) is itself an anticipation of the ultimate wrath or judgment of God (Rom 1:18–2:5), whether or not it is perceived as such” ( New American Bible, revised edition , fn. to 1 Thess. 2:15-16, p. 315). Looking at this entire section of Paul’s letter (1 Thess. 2:1-16), what would you have valued about Paul if you had been in Paul's church? In what ways might you like to be an imitator of Paul? Take a step back and consider this: In verse 4, Paul says that he, Silas, and Timothy were “entrusted” with the gospel. Raymond F. Collins writes, “Paul’s language recalls that of the Athenian court. Public officials are first scrutinized before they are entrusted with political responsibility. In similar fashion, Paul and his companions have been scrutinized by God before being entrusted with the mission of proclaiming the gospel” (Collins, “1 Thessalonians,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , par. 19, p. 775). All believers, by virtue of their participation in the faith of Christ and the life of the Church, are entrusted with the task of sharing the gospel (in varying ways, of course, depending on our gifts, etc.). This is obvious to most Protestant believers. Catholics sometimes slip into thinking that the task of sharing the gospel belongs to the priests and religious. However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “the faithful, who by Baptism are incorporated into Christ and integrated into the People of God, are made sharers in their particular way in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly office of Christ, and have their own part to play in the mission of the whole Christian people in the Church and in the World” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church. Second Edition , https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/238/ , par. 897, page 237, quoting from Pope Paul VI, Lumen Gentium, (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) , 21 Nov. 1964, par. 31). The Catechism goes on to say: “Since, like all the faithful, lay Christians are entrusted by God with the apostolate by virtue of their Baptism and Confirmation, they have the right and duty, individually or grouped in associations, to work so that the divine message of salvation may be known and accepted by all men throughout the earth. This duty is the more pressing when it is only through them that men can hear the Gospel and know Christ.” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church. Second Edition , https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/240/ , par. 900, page 238) The priests and ministers can’t be everywhere and can’t know everyone; and even if they did, they wouldn’t have all the relationships we have. Some people may only hear the gospel through us. God has entrusted all of us with the work of spreading the message of salvation. All of us are called to share the good news, to encourage others to put their faith in Jesus Christ and accept the love God has for us. What do you need to do differently, if anything, in light of the fact that God has entrusted you with the gospel? Bibliography See 1 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/1-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 1 Thess. List Next

Paul continues to guide the young church at Thessalonica with wisdom that is still relevant to local churches and the whole Church today. Previous 2 Thess. List Next Introduction to 2 Thessalonians Paul continues to guide the young church at Thessalonica with wisdom that is still relevant to local churches and the whole Church today. Detail of an image by Lucia Macedo provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti March 10, 2025 Introduction A NOTE BEFORE WE BEGIN This study material can be very enriching either for small-group Bible Study or for personal study and growth. We will occasionally offer instructions that would be useful for a small-group study. Introductions for a Small-Group Bible Study If you are studying as a group, it is important to build community, beginning with ensuring that everyone knows everyone else’s name. If you are either (a) starting a new year, or (b) have several new members, begin with introductions. One way to do this would be to ask everyone in the group to answer these questions: Share with the group your name, your connection to the Church or the parish or this group, and why you are interested in studying the Bible with other people. When have you received a letter (or perhaps an email) that was especially important in your life? What was it about? This is a study of Paul’s Second Letter to the Thessalonians. See the Introduction to 1 Thessalonians for the primary background information for this letter. Introduction to 2 Thessalonians After Paul wrote his first letter to the Thessalonians (known as 1 Thessalonians), something went wrong. We don’t know precisely what problem arose, but in 2 Thessalonians, Paul warns the Thessalonians (in 2 Thess. 2:2) not to become alarmed by a letter allegedly sent from him, claiming that the day of the Lord “is at hand” (NABRE) or “is already here” (NRSV) – i.e., that the Second Coming has already begun. (“The day of the Lord” was the term used in prophetic books of the Old Testament – Daniel, Isaiah, Joel, and others – for the miraculous time when God would bring victory for the Jews. Christians re-interpreted it as the day when Christ would return in power and glory.) Paul suggests in 1 Corinthians 16:21 and Galatians 6:11 that he ordinarily dictates his letters and someone else does the actual writing (the formal term for that person is an “amanuensis”). At the end of this letter (2 Thess. 3:17), Paul implies that he always signs his letters in a way that is distinctive and identifiable. He is suggesting that a forgery written in his name could be detected because it would be missing Paul’s genuine signature. It is also possible that Paul’s own words in his first letter were a source of the Thessalonians’ confusion. In 1 Thessalonians, he described the Lord’s coming as a sudden event, and they may have interpreted “sudden” to mean that it was imminent and they might have missed it. Most scholars believe this letter was written by Paul shortly after 1 Thessalonians, in which case it was probably written around AD 50 from Corinth. However, other possibilities have been suggested: Some say that it was written before 1 Thessalonians; some say it was written to some other church; and some suggest that it was written decades later by someone else using Paul’s name (which would be highly ironic given its claim that Paul’s authentic signature offers clear evidence that the letter was written by him). In this letter, Paul wants to clear up confusion about the Second Coming of Christ. He also wants to reinforce and expand on his teaching about the kind of orderly life that Christians should live. When has something you have said been misrepresented? What did you do about it? Do you have distinctive ways of writing or of using the signature block at the end of your emails, or distinctive ways of beginning or ending your emails or texts, that people might use as a guide to deciding whether a message is actually from you? How important to you are those signs of your individuality, and why? How is your individuality important in the body of Christ and in the kingdom of God? Take a step back and consider this: Paul is eager to guide the young church at Thessalonica – to support them in their faith, thank them for the love they show for one another, and encourage them in their endurance in the face of persecution. Paul has great concern for the church at Thessalonica. How do you demonstrate a concern for your own local church? In what ways do you support your fellow church members in their faith, participate in and bolster their love for one another, and encourage those who are facing difficulties? Bibliography See 2 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/2-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 2 Thess. List Next

Jesus feeds a multitude by multiplying loaves of bread. The people miss the point. How are we vulnerable to missing the point of what God is trying to do? [John 6:1-13; 6:14-15; loaves and fishes] Previous Next John List John 6:1-15 Jesus feeds a multitude by multiplying loaves of bread. The people miss the point. How are we vulnerable to missing the point of what God is trying to do? Johann von Sandrart (1606-1688). The Feeding of the Five Thousand . Between 1673 and 1678. Unionskirche (Union Church), Idstein, Germany. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johann_von_Sandrart_-_The_Feeding_of_the_Five_Thousand.jpg . Tom Faletti February 1, 2026 Read John 6:1-15 Jesus feeds a multitude of 5,000 by multiplying loaves of bread (“the loaves and fishes”) This is the 4 th “sign” in John’s set of 7 signs that Jesus performed. What happens in this story? What verse stands out for you in the passage, and why? Verse 6 tells us that Jesus already knew what he was going to do. Why, then, do you think he asked the disciples to solve the problem? Let’s look at the characters in this story: Philip appears in all the Gospels and Acts, but he appears more often in John. He was from Bethsaida and was a friend of Peter and Andrew. He is the one who invited Nathanael to “come and see” Jesus (John 1:43-46). Philip is forthright and practical, so he is willing to tell Jesus that it is not possible to buy enough food to feed all the people. In verse 7, he says that it would cost 200 denarii to feed the crowd, which is the equivalent of 200 days’ wages for a laborer. Are there times when you are like Philip, who is practical and sure that nothing can be done? Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist and one of Jesus’s first two disciples in John’s Gospel (John 1:35-42). He introduces his brother Simon (later called Peter) to Jesus. He is the one who ignores the impossibility of Jesus’s request and instead speaks up about what is available, even though he points out that it is not sufficient. Are there times when you are like Andrew, who offered what was available, even though he knew it couldn’t possibly be enough? How can you be more like Andrew in offering God what you have, which may open the door for God to work? It doesn’t occur to Philip or Andrew that Jesus might have a solution. When do you most tend to forget that Jesus might have answers to the problems in your life? We don’t know anything about the boy except that he appears to be willing to share what he has. He has barley loaves. Barley loaves were the food of the poor. In what ways are you like the boy? How can you be more like the boy? Jesus involved other people in this miracle by using what they brought to him. He didn’t just do the miracle alone. Why? When John says in 6:10 that Jesus had them sit on grass, this suggests that it was springtime ( NABRE , John 6:10 fn.). Passover was in the springtime, and John says in 6:4 that the Passover was near. So there is coherence in the story. Matthew also says the people sit on grass in the feeding of the 5,000 (Matt. 14:19) (whereas in the feeding of the 4,000 the people sit on the ground (Matt. 15:35)). Is there something going on in your life right now where there is a need that seems impossible to meet? How can you be like Andrew, give Jesus what you have, and trust him for what you need? What is the message of this story for us? There are many ways to apply this story to our lives, including the following: - God cares about us and our everyday needs and provides for us. - Even if I have doubts, even if I think I don’t have the means to address the problems before me, I can make myself available to God, identify the knowledge and resources that are available to me, and trust God to expand what I have until it is sufficient for the need. - God can do what I cannot. As God says to Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” - Always be open to sharing what you have. This passage recalls two Old Testament passages. Elisha fed of 100 men by the multiplication of 20 barley loaves and had some left over (2 Kings 4:42-44). God provided manna to feed the people of Israel in the desert in Exodus 16. Jews customarily offered a blessing before eating a meal. In 6:11, John says that Jesus distributed the bread after he “had given thanks.” The Greek word for “to give thanks” is eucharisteō , the same Greek word from which we get our word Eucharist, which is another word for the Christian celebration also known as Holy Communion. John does not include the Last Supper in his Gospel. Instead, he has the accounts of Jesus performing the miracle where he makes wine available (2:1-11) and the miracle where he makes bread available (6:1-15). How do those two miracles relate to the Christian celebration of Holy Communion or the Eucharist? In verse 12, Jesus tells them to gather what is left over, so that nothing is wasted. What does this tell you about Jesus? How might we apply to our own lives Jesus’s desire that what was left not be wasted? When God does something in our lives, he doesn’t want us to waste it. We should savor it and do something with what he has given us. In verse 14, the people say Jesus must be the Prophet. This is a reference to Deuteronomy 18:15-19, where Moses says that God will raise up a prophet like him to lead the people. How does Jesus react to their desire to make him a king? John doesn’t tell us what Jesus does when he goes up the mountain, but Matthew tells us that he went up to pray (Matt. 14:23). What do you think he was praying about, as he talks to his Father? Why are mountains sometimes good places to pray? Where do you go to “withdraw” from what is around you and pray? How important are those times of “withdrawal,” and why? Take a step back and consider this: The people were happy to eat the food that Jesus provided freely to them, but at this point they were totally missing the point of his mission. We may fall into the same trap: enjoying the blessings we receive from God without recognizing what he is trying to do in us and through us as he transforms us. Are there blessings from God that you are taking for granted? Are there blessings that you may be misinterpreting as signs that God likes what you are doing rather than as signs that God is calling you deeper into the work he is doing? How can you further embrace God’s purposes, and not just his blessings, today? Bibliography See John - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/john/bibliography . Copyright © 2026, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous John List Next

Suffering is coming for Jesus, and he calls us to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 16:21-28 Suffering is coming for Jesus, and he calls us to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him. James Tissot. Rétire-toi, Satan [Get Thee Behind Me, Satan] . Between 1886 and 1894. Brooklyn Museum, New York, NY. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brooklyn_Museum_-_Get_Thee_Behind_Me_Satan_(R%C3%A9tire-toi_Satan)_-_James_Tissot.jpg . Tom Faletti June 17, 2025 Matthew 16:21-23 Jesus predicts his passion for the first time, and Peter objects This the first of 3 predictions of Jesus’s passion (see also 17:22-23 and 20:17-19). What does Jesus say will happen to him, and at whose hands? The elders, the chief priests, and the scribes will cause him great suffering, and he will be killed. What will the ultimate outcome be? On the third day he will be raised. The elders, the chief priests, and the scribes made up the Sanhedrin, the council with political authority over the Jewish people, under the Romans. He says that they will cause him suffering, but he doesn’t say that they will kill him. As we know, the Romans killed him, not the Jews. When Jesus says that the elders, chief priests, and scribes will cause him to suffer, he is describing the Sanhedrin, the political body made up of political, economic, and religious leaders of the Jewish society. Jesus’s passion begins with a political body and ends with the Roman government – political leaders, not the crowds of ordinary people. How does that affect or shape your image of Jesus’s death? Notice that Jesus doesn’t include the Pharisees in the list of those who will cause him suffering. The Pharisees were like a religious or social group within the overall society. Most Pharisees were ordinary people, not members of the political or religious leadership. The political leadership, in particular, tended to be Sadducees, not Pharisees. Why do you think Peter “took him aside” to object rather than saying something in front of the other disciples? What is Peter’s objection? How is what Peter says wrong? There are several different elements in Jesus’s response. First, he says, “Get behind me,” implying that Peter is no longer following him. In what sense is Peter no longer following Jesus when he says this? Peter is trying to lead Jesus instead of following him. “Satan” is a Hebrew word meaning “adversary” or “accuser.” Over time, it came to be used as a name for the devil: for example, when Jesus is tempted in the desert, he calls the devil “Satan” in Matthew 4:10. When Jesus calls Peter “Satan,” he is using a Hebrew word that means “adversary.” In what way has Peter become Jesus’s adversary, like Satan who tempted him in the desert? Jesus’s command to Peter is, “Get behind me, Satan,” not “Get out of my sight!” What is the significance of the fact that Jesus put it this way? He is not telling Peter to leave him, only to stop trying to lead Jesus in the wrong direction. Jesus also calls Peter a stumbling block or obstacle (the Greek word is skandalon ). What does it mean when someone is a stumbling block? This is Peer’s first attempt to “bind” – to say what should or should not happen – and Jesus says, No. You need to let me lead you, not have you lead me. Have you ever unintentionally been a stumbling block to someone else? When you realized it, what did you do about it? Jesus says that Peter is not thinking as God does but as humans do (literally you are not thinking of the things of God but of the things of man). What does this mean? We face real problems and challenges, and we need to think in order to deal with them. How can we think about those things in a way that reflects the thoughts of God and not just human thinking? How can you recognize when your mind is stuck on human things rather thinking about the things of God? Matthew 16:24-28 Everyone is called to carry their cross In verse 24, Jesus says there are 3 things we must do if we want to be followers of Jesus. What are they? What does it mean to “deny” yourself? A useful footnote in the New American Bible, revised edition says that “to deny someone is to disown him (see Mt 10:33; 26:34–35) and to deny oneself is to disown oneself as the center of one’s existence” ( NABRE , Matt. 16:24 fn. ). To deny yourself is to live your life according to the principle articulated by Rick Warren in the first words of his book The Purpose-Driven Life : “It’s not about you” (Warren, p. 1). This doesn’t mean you are not important. It just means that everything about you must be seen in the light of the cross of Christ if you want to reach your full purpose. To deny yourself means to always be asking: What is God trying to do here? Based on the answer to that question, I might need to not do something, because it might get in the way of what God is trying to do here. That doesn’t mean that what I might have wanted to do is inherently wrong or evil, only that it doesn’t fit the circumstances if the goal is to have God’s will be done. What does it mean to “take up your cross”? What is that a metaphor for? Luke adds the word “daily” (Luke 9:23). It’s not a one-time decision; it’s a way of life. What does it mean to “follow” Jesus? We’re not following him from town to town as the disciples were. What does it look like in practical terms to “follow” Jesus in our time? It is easy to say that we are taking up our cross while we keep living mostly for ourselves, so Jesus goes on. What does he say about “saving” and “losing” our lives in verse 25, and what does it mean? Most people don’t face the threat of death for following Jesus. What do you think he means by “losing” our lives? This could mean many things, such as not putting yourself first, not focusing on yourself and what you might get out of a situation, but focusing instead on what God is trying to do or would like to see happen. In what ways might we be trying to “save” our lives rather than “losing” them for Jesus’s sake? Jesus says something very similar in Matthew 10:38-39. Is there something you might be trying to hold on to, that might be keeping you from following Jesus more fully? In verse 27, Jesus tells us that when he returns he will give back to each person according to what they have done. This teaching that that there will be an accounting of people’s lives at the end of time – how is that good news from a good and loving God? Note that Jesus describes his return and the Last Judgment in similar terms, with much more detail, in Matthew 25:31-46. How do you feel about the fact that, when Jesus returns, he will give back to people according to what they have done? How, if at all, does this passage make you want to adjust anything about how you live your life? For many people, denying yourself and taking up your cross is hard. It sometimes gets easier with practice. How can you develop in your ability to do this, so that it becomes more of an instinct and less of a struggle? Some people find themselves in situations where they just keep deny themselves, giving, giving, giving, and people around them continually take advantage of them. Are there times when following Jesus does not mean denying yourself to satisfy people who constantly take advantage of you? How would you discern when that might be the case, and still be true to the point of this teaching? In verse 28, Jesus says that some people will not die until “they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” This cannot be a reference to the coming of Christ at the end of the world. One interpretation is that it refers to the time when Jesus comes back after his resurrection. In what ways is Jesus present in his kingdom now? Anywhere that God’s rule is acknowledged and followed, the kingdom of God is present. The kingdom of God is growing and spreading, and we help to spread it and help it grow by our actions and words. There are other interpretations of verse 28. Some scholars see it as a reference to Jesus’s transfiguration, which happens in the next passage, but there are no angels in the transfiguration story. (There are angels present in the resurrection story). Some scholars argue that there is a difference between the coming of the Son of Man and the coming of the Son of God (Brown, p. 190), and that we are in the era of the kingdom of the Son of Man now, whereas we will see the coming of the kingdom of God when Jesus returns in glory at the end of time. Another interpretation focuses on the fact that Mark phrases this sentence differently. In Mark 9:1, Jesus says that some people will not die until “they see the kingdom of God coming with power,” which could be referring to when the Holy Spirit comes, at Pentecost and in the later life of the Church. Take a step back and consider this: Up until this point, it must have been wonderful being a disciple of Jesus: there had been some modest opposition but Jesus had handled it easily, and Jesus had been doing exciting and powerful things that they got to witness and sometimes participate in. But now, things have suddenly turned darker. Jesus has started saying that he will suffer and be killed. How could the one who had the power to command even the wind and the waves, who could walk on water, who could heal any disease brought before him – how could he possibly encounter any opposition that he couldn’t stop with a simple command? And when Peter challenged what he said, Jesus had responded with the sharpest rebuke they had ever heard from him, followed by a stern teaching they didn’t entirely understand but that didn’t sound fun: that they needed to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow him. Follow him? They understood that part. But deny themselves and take up their cross? What did that mean? Those of us who were raised in the faith might have had a similar journey. When we are children, most parents and teachers don’t dwell on the “deny yourself and take up your cross” part of the faith. And it might be downplayed to adults who are exploring the faith for the first time, for fear that they will be put off by it. Yet it is central to the Christian faith. How do we deal with the truth that Christianity calls us to self-sacrifice? When you are telling people about what you believe, is the part about denying yourself and taking up your cross part of the story you tell? Why or why not? How important is this teaching to a full and mature understanding of the faith? How can you not only follow this teaching but explain it to others in a way that communicates the beauty and the joy of giving your whole self to Jesus? And is that something you need to work on for yourself? If so, how? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Jesus is greater than King David. He’s not your ordinary messiah, not your ordinary son of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus is greater than King David. He’s not your ordinary messiah, not your ordinary son of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640). King David playing the harp . Tapestry. Circa 1628. Convent of Las Descalzas Reales, Madrid, Spain. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:King_David_playing_the_Harp.png . Tom Faletti August 18, 2025 Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus challenges the Pharisees: What do the Psalms say about the Messiah? Matthew has now presented 3 separate confrontations between Jesus and 3 major factions of Jewish religious and political society: the Pharisees, the Herodians, and the Sadducees. Each group hoped to trip him up. In each case, he not only outwitted them; he gave timeless guidance for how to think about major questions in life. Jesus now turns the tables and poses a question to the Pharisees. He knows that they believe, correctly, that the Messiah will be the son of David. Matthew signaled from the very beginning of his Gospel that this is a key theme of the Gospel, when he presented the genealogy of Jesus in a way that showed that Jesus is the son of David (Matt. 1:1ff) and the Messiah. First, Jesus asks the Pharisees an easy question. What does Jesus ask in verse 42, and how do they answer? Jesus then asks a really difficult question that had never occurred to them. In verses 44, Jesus quotes from Psalm 110:1. This psalm begins with a caption attributing the psalm to David, and the Jews of Jesus’s time believed that this psalm was talking about the Messiah. In verse 43, he points out that David was inspired by the Spirit when he wrote it. In verses 43-45, what is the meaning of Jesus’s question? Why is this a difficult question? In the psalm, David says: The Lord (i.e., God) said to “my lord” (meaning whom?), “Sit at my right hand….” Who could David be referring to as his “lord”? The Jews interpreted the psalm as speaking about a son (descendant) of David, but a child is generally not considered greater than the parent. Who could be of higher stature than David, that David would call him “lord”? The Jews of Jesus’s time believed that in this psalm David was talking about the future messiah, yet David calls this descendant of his his lord. Jesus asks, how can this be? It is a difficult question because it suggests that the messiah is greater than David, not simply a descendant who would restore David’s throne. How can this be? If the messiah is greater than David, not just a son of David, what might that suggest about the Messiah? Jesus is suggesting that this Messiah is greater than David and more than just a “son of David.” But what could be greater than David? This raises the possibility that the Messiah is the Son of God. Is Jesus saying something about himself? How does this relate to Jesus? Several people have called Jesus the Son of David in Matthew’s Gospel, and he has never rejected the title. When the crowd called him the Son of David in Matthew 21:9 as he entered Jerusalem, he did not reject it. And in Matthew 21:15-16 when the chief priests and scribes criticized the use of that title for Jesus, he embraced it. So he is indicating that he is greater than David – greater than any human. If we put the pieces together, Jesus is saying that Jesus is the long-expected Messiah and Son of God, and that David prophesied that God would say to Jesus: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” If Jesus is described as being at God’s right hand and that God will put his enemies under his feet, what does that say about Jesus? Are the ideas in this passage old news to you, or does it shed new light on your faith in some way? What does this passage say to you? Matthew wants us to understand that Jesus is more than an ordinary messiah, more than a generic descendant of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Who is Jesus to you? Jesus has now stumped the people who should know the most about the Hebrew Scriptures. What does verse 46 tell us? Why are they afraid to ask him any more questions? Should we be afraid to ask Jesus questions about the Scriptures or anything else? Why not? Why do you think Matthew has walked through these debates between Jesus and the various Jewish factions? Among other things, Matthew is showing that no one knows the Old Testament Scriptures better than Jesus and that the Scriptures point to Jesus’s unique identity as the Son of God. It also sets the stage for what is coming by showing some of the reasons why the Jewish leaders want Jesus dead. And it shows Matthew’s readers why they can believe in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God. Looking back at the debates between Jesus and his opponents in Matthew 22:15-46, how does Jesus want us to respond to what we are learning from him in these passages? Take a step back and consider this: One of the early debates in the Church, as it was first being formed, was whether Christians needed the Old Testament or could just discard it as a relic of an earlier time before Jesus appeared. How do you think Jesus would respond to that question? Why is an understanding of the Old Testament valuable for the faith of a Christian? What is your relationship with the Old Testament? Do you find it valuable? If so, why? Are there ways you think you could do more to enhance your understanding of the Old Testament? Why? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Jesus’s word was enough for the royal official. How much faith do you place in Jesus’s word? Previous Next John List John 4:43-54 Jesus’s word was enough for the royal official. How much faith do you place in Jesus’s word? James Tissot (1836-1902). The Healing of the Officer's Son (La guérison du fils de l'officier) . 1886–1894. Cropped. Brooklyn Museum, New York, NY. Public domain, Creative Commons License: CC BY-NC-SA , via Brooklyn Museum, https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/objects/13404 . Tom Faletti January 13, 2026 Read John 4:43-54 Jesus returns to Galilee and heals a royal official’s son – the second “sign” The first sign and the stories that followed it helps us think about Jesus’s role as living water . The next set of stories explores how Jesus’s word has the power to give life. The 7 signs John focuses on are not the only miracles Jesus performs. They are not even the only “signs” Jesus performs (John tells us in 2:11 that he performed other signs in Jerusalem). But John gives special attention to these 7 signs that point beyond the miracle to who Jesus is. Here are the Gospel of John’s 7 signs: Jesus turns water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana (John 2:1-12). Followed by the discussion with the Samaritan woman, Jesus shows he is the living water. Jesus heals the official’s son (John 4:46-54). Jesus shows his power over illness and ability to heal even at a distance. Jesus heals the paralytic on the Sabbath (John 5:1-47). Jesus shows he is Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus feeds the 5,000 by the multiplication of loaves and fish (John 6:1-14). Jesus is the Bread of Life. Jesus walks on water (John 6:16-24). Jesus has power over nature and overcomes fear. Jesus heals the man born blind (John 9:1-41). This sign is preceded by Jesus’s declaration that he is the Light of the World (John 8:12). It shows that Jesus offers spiritual insight so that we can see clearly. Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-44). Jesus shows his power even over death, after declaring that he is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). What does Jesus say in verse 44, and what does it mean? Some people see a contradiction between verses 44 and 45. In the short run, verse 45 tells us that the Galileans welcomed him because the people who had gone to the feast in Jerusalem reported the good things that Jesus had done. But John cautions us that this did not last in the long run, warning us in verse 44 that the proverb is true that says that a prophet is not honored in his native place. What happens in this story about the royal official in Cana? Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10 have a similar but not identical story. In Matthew and Luke, the one asking for help is a centurion – a military officer with 100 soldiers under him, and therefore a Gentile. In John, it is a “royal official,” meaning someone in the court of Herod Antipas, who was the ruler of Galilee, and therefore probably someone who is a Jew. In Matthew and John, the sick person is the centurion’s pais , a Greek word that can mean either one’s boy or girl child or one’s slave. Luke uses the word doulos , which only means slave (although it is often translated as servant). We needn’t be troubled by these minor discrepancies in people’s memory of what Jesus did. However, the television series The Chosen suggests a solution to part of the possible discrepancy: in their storyline, the boy is the illegitimate son of the official and of a servant/slave under him, and the boy was raised as a servant/slave. In all of the versions, the man is from Capernaum, suggesting that there is a common core event, even if there was uncertainty about exactly who Jesus healed from miles away. How is the official feeling in the beginning? Jesus responds in verse 48 by expressing concern that people only believe because of they see his signs and wonders. What is wrong with that? John warns in verses 44-45 that people might not believe in Jesus in the end, when the signs people expected don’t come to pass, even though they might believe for a time. John previously warned in 2:23-24 that there is a difference between initially “believing” because of Jesus’s signs and truly believing in a way that permanently changes your life. Why do you think the official persists when Jesus makes that comment? What can we learn from him? In verse 49, the official asks Jesus to come “down” to Capernaum. Capernaum was a port city on the Sea of Galilee (a lake, actually), which is east of Galilee. Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee are around 700 feet below sea level. Archaeologists have identified 2 possible sites for Cana. Both are up in the hilly part of Galilee, at least 700 feet above sea level, so there is a 1,400-foot difference in elevation between the two towns. Capernaum was perhaps a 20-mile walk down from Cana, which would have taken a whole day. To walk from Capernaum to Cana, as the royal official had done, would have taken longer, because it required a climb of 1,400 feet in elevation. The official asks Jesus to come to Capernaum. Why do you think Jesus chose to heal the man’s son at a distance rather than going to Capernaum? Verse 50 tells us that the man “believed the word that Jesus said to him” and left. Why was Jesus’s word enough for him? The man chose to believe the word of Jesus. Have you had an experience like that, where you needed to believe the word of God before it was clear that he would do something? What happened? What can we learn from this about the power of Jesus’s word? When we are desperate, as this man was, we might be tempted to believe anyone who says they can help us. How do you discern which words are truly from God and which are not, in order to avoid being fooled by false prophets? If you had been that official, would you have needed something more than just a word from Jesus before you left? More generally, what kinds of “signs and wonders” (verse 48) do you need before you are ready to believe a word from Jesus? What is Jesus saying to you in this passage? Take a step back and consider this: Verse 53 says that the man (and his whole household) believed. What sort of belief do you think he had when it says he believed in verse 53 (believed what)? How might this belief have been greater or different than the belief he had in verse 50 where it says he believed when Jesus said his son would live? Initially, the man at least believed that Jesus has the power to heal. In verse 53, he probably believes that Jesus is sent from God and that what he teaches is true, and perhaps even that he is the Messiah. “Belief” can have many levels. One can believe merely that God exists, or also that Jesus has power from God, or that Jesus is God. One can stop with head knowledge, or one can act on it and become a follower and disciple of Jesus. One can make Jesus part of their life, or they can be “all in” and try to let Jesus shape every aspect of who they are. When you say you “believe” in God or in Jesus, what does it mean for you? What do you mean when you say you have put your faith in God? Bibliography See John - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/john/bibliography . Copyright © 2026, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous John List Next

Pre-tribulation theories contradict Jesus and Paul. What does the Bible actually say? Previous Christian Faith Articles Next The Rapture? It’s Not a Pre-Millennial Escape from Tribulation Pre-tribulation theories contradict Jesus and Paul. What does the Bible actually say? Image by CHUTTERSNAP, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti December 13, 2024 In 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18, the apostle Paul refers to the “rapture” while he is discussing the end times when Christ will return. The word “rapture” comes from the Latin word that translates the Greek word in verse 17 where Paul says that we will be “caught up” (literally, “snatched”) to meet the Lord in the air. Authors Tim LaHaye of the Left Behind series and Hal Lindsey of The Late Great Planet Earth fame have popularized an approach to interpreting what the Scriptures say about the end times that leans heavily on a modern interpretation of Paul’s “rapture.” These authors (and others, who don’t always agree among themselves) combine their interpretation of the rapture with their interpretation of the “1000 years” mentioned in Revelation 20:2-3 and other Bible passages to produce an entire timeline of the end times that is not consistent with the historic understanding of the Scriptures. Their views are based on ideas that mostly did not spread until the 19th century. Most of Christendom from the time of Augustine in the 5th century until the 19th century has taken a very different approach to interpreting the Bible’s end-times passages. Currently, the Catholic Church, the Orthodox Churches, and many Protestant denominations – including the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches and others – reject that interpretation of the end times. This summary of the problem is drawn from a variety of sources, in an attempt to identify the commonalities in Catholic and Protestant thinking about the subject. In addition to the sources used in my 1 Thessalonians study, it also considers Trent Horn (Catholic), Karlo Broussard (Catholic), Alan S. Bandy (Reformed), the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (Lutheran), and “Where does the Rapture fit into UM beliefs?” (United Methodist). The historic churches and denominations have much in common in their understanding of the end times. The main divide on this topic is not between Protestants and Catholics. The main divide is between a fundamentalist segment of modern Christianity and the rest of Christianity. Frameworks for thinking about the end times There are roughly 6 common frameworks for thinking about the rapture, the tribulation, and the 1000-year “millennial” reign mentioned in Revelation 20:2-3: The first three approaches all revolve around the idea that the rapture will precede a 1000-year millennium of peace and righteousness on earth. However, the pre-millennialists don’t agree on whether the rapture will happen before, during, or after the tribulation that precedes the end: Pre-tribulation, pre-millennial: Christ will come and take the Christians who are alive to heaven (the “rapture”) before the tribulation. Then the tribulation will come, in a world devoid of Christians. Then Christ will come again with the church (which sounds like a second Second Coming, since he already came to rapture people). Then Christ will reign for 1000 years, and then there will be the final judgment (which sounds like a third Second Coming). This is the view of the people like Tim LaHaye and Hal Lindsey who have fed the “rapture” industry. Mid-tribulation, pre-millennial: This approach is similar to the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach, except that the rapture will happen in the middle of the tribulation (i.e., halfway through the 7-year tribulation), not before it begins. Therefore, Christians will experience some of the tribulation and not be fully spared. Post-tribulation, pre-millennial: This approach says that Christians will not be spared the tribulation at all. Christians will not join Christ until he comes in his Second Coming at the end of the tribulation. Then Christ will reign for 1000 years, and then the final judgment will come. These approaches all separate the Second Coming of Christ from the final judgment. Jesus never suggests such a separation, nor does Paul. They both describe one decisive event when Jesus comes, takes believers to himself, and presides over the final judgment. Amillennial: This view rejects the separation of the “rapture” from the final judgment and the entire pre-millennial framework. In this view, we are in the 1000-year reign of Christ, which began when Christ broke the power of sin by his death and resurrection and ascended into heaven. The reference to “1000” years in the Book of Revelation is symbolic, not literal: “1000” means a large number and “1000 years” means “a very long time.” Revelation 20 says that in this millennial time, the devil is being restrained. God is giving us time so that the gospel can be spread around the world. After the period we are now in, which includes its own times of smaller tribulation, Satan will be allowed to try to turn people away from Christ and the great, final tribulation will come. The Christians and non-Christians suffer now, and both the church and non-believers will suffer during the final tribulation, as Jesus warned from the beginning (see, for example, Matthew 24:29-31, where the tribulation precedes the gathering of the elect to Christ). After that period of tribulation, the final judgment will begin with Christians being caught up with those who have risen from the dead to meet Christ when he returns (1 Thess. 4:17; also referred to by Paul in 2 Thess. 2:1 as our “assembling” with the Lord). That event is not a pre-tribulation, pre-millennial escape from suffering; it is part of the Second Coming and final judgment exercised by Christ. This more traditional approach to interpreting the end-times Scriptures was the generally accepted view throughout the church from the time of Augustine in the 5th century, through the Protestant Reformation, and all the way until the 19th century. It is more faithful to the Scriptures, and it is followed by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and a variety of current Protestant denominations, including the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches and others. Although scholars call this approach the “amillennial” approach, that term is not necessarily used by these churches. All of those churches reject the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach that was popularized in the decades before and after the year 2000. There are two other views worth mentioning, for the sake of completeness (and there are many other sub-categories and branches dividing all of the approaches). Postmillennial: In this view, first there will be a (literal or symbolic) 1000-year golden age of prosperity and minimal suffering on Earth, during which most people will be converted to Christ and live in righteousness. The devil will be bound during that time but will be loosed at the end of the 1000 years. After that 1000 years of relative peace, there will be a time of tribulation followed by the Second Coming (when believers will be called up to heaven) and the final judgment. This view was popular in the 19th century (the 1800s), until the World Wars of the 20th century made people rethink whether the world could reach such a golden age of righteousness. Metaphorical: In this view, most of the end-times references in the Bible are metaphorical and should not be interpreted literally. There will not be a literal trumpet, a literal 1000-year reign, a literal meeting of Christ in the sky, etc. God has used figurative language and metaphors to help us understand things that are beyond us. All of the key points of Scripture will be fulfilled: Christ will return and judge the world, the dead will be raised, there will be a final judgment, the devil and death will be defeated, and Christians will live with Christ forever. But the details of what it will look like are not for us to worry about. Problems with the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture idea The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory is inconsistent with Scripture in several ways: The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture violates the claim in Acts 1:11 that Jesus will return in the same visible way he left, since the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial story creates a scenario where Jesus remains hidden except to believers. The theory claims that Jesus doesn’t stay on Earth after the rapture and only returning visibly 1000 years later. The word Paul uses in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 for the “coming” of the Lord (the Greek word parousia ) in was used by the Greeks before Christ to refer to the ceremonial arrival of a king or ruler. Pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture proponents argue that in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Christ only comes partly back, gathers the raptured people, and returns to heaven. However, Paul does not say Jesus immediately returns to heaven with them; he only says that those who are caught up to meet him in the air will be with him forever. The word for “meet” in verse 17 is a Greek word used to describe the situation where people go out from their town to meet a visiting official or king and escort that official into their city (in response to the “coming” in verse 15). Paul is saying that when Christ comes to Earth and the risen Christians and the still-alive Christians join him, they will stay with him as he comes to the Earth and does his work of final judgment. The idea that Christ aborts his “coming” and returns to heaven, only to return later, has been added by the pre-tribulation advocates without justification or good evidence. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory that Jesus’s coming to gather the elect is separated from his final judgment by 1000 years contradicts Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says that Christ’s Second Coming will be announced with an archangel’s voice and the sound of a trumpet, at which point the dead will be raised. 1 Corinthians 15:51-55 also links the trumpet to the raising of the dead. In Matthew 24:29-31, Jesus links his coming in power and glory (verse 30) with the angels (verse 31), the sound of the trumpet (verse 31), and the gathering of the elect (verse 31). In Matthew 25:31-33, Jesus links his coming in glory (verse 31) with the final judgment (verses 32-33ff). These events are all connected and happen together. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach contradicts Jesus by separating the raising of the dead from the final judgment by 1000 years. In Matthew 24:29, Jesus says that these events happen right after the tribulation (verse 29). The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial advocates seek to escape the tribulation that Jesus clearly foretells. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture violates Jesus’s statement in Matthew 16:27 that when he comes with his angels, he will repay people according to their deeds (i.e., the Second Coming with the final judgment). Again, Jesus does not teach any separation between these events. Note: Some rapture fans also interpret Luke 17:34-37 as referring to the rapture. In that passage, Jesus says that one person will be taken and another will be left. However, when you read that verse in context, starting at verse 26, you see that people are being “taken” in judgment. They are not being taken to heaven. They are not being raptured away to be saved from tribulation. Conclusion: The popular theory is wrong, but the Lord will be with us forever. In summary, the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture story created in the 19th century and popularized as Americans endured the Cold War and approached the millennial year 2000 does not have a sound basis in Scripture. The Book of Revelation is filled with symbolic language. There is no reason to distort the teachings of Jesus and Paul in order to interpret Revelation’s round number of 1000 years as a literal 1000 years. It is symbolic for the long period of time we are in before the Lord returns. And Jesus and Paul are very clear that Christians will endure the tribulation before they are united with Christ in his return. We must reject the distortions of their words that are central to every pre-tribulation rapture theory. This also means that no one escapes the tribulation except by dying. What else is true? The Scriptures tell us clearly: Christ will return. The dead will be raised. Christians (both those who have died and those who are still alive) will be united with Christ and live with him forever. Christ will judge the living and the dead and ask them how they treated “the least of these” among us. Fortunately, that’s all we really need to know about the end times. Copyright © 2024, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Christian Faith Articles Next

Integrity means your words line up with your actions. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 5:33-37 Integrity means your words line up with your actions. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti May 2, 2024 Matthew 5:33-37 Oaths: what are you saying? What did the Old Testament Law say about oaths in Leviticus 19:12? What kind of oaths were prohibited? (See also Deuteronomy 23:21-23.) In Jesus’s time, Jews made oaths and vows frequently and casually. William Barclay says they developed arcane rules for which oaths actually had to be honored and which could be ignored without repercussions (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 , p. 157). If you didn’t include God himself in your oath, it didn’t “count.” What does Jesus say about oaths? What are the reasons behind Jesus’s prohibit of these oaths? We do not have control over the heavens, the earth, or even our own bodies, so we have no right to be swearing by them. What do you think about Jesus’s rule, and why? If I leave the heavens, etc., out of my oath is it OK? Or is Jesus making a bigger point? How often do you make promises? How seriously do you take your promises? How do respond when someone says, “Promise me you’ll . . .”? Some people often signal that they are about to say something honest with a phrase such as: “I’m not going to lie to you,” “Frankly,” “To tell the truth,” etc. I sometimes wonder, when such people say other things that are not prefaced by that assurance, whether that means that what they are about to say might not be the truth. How honest are you in your everyday dealings with people? Can others count on what you are saying to be true, or do you have a tendency to shade the truth? Why does Jesus say that anything more than “Yes” or “No” comes from the evil one? Jesus is saying that a truly good person would never need to take an oath because everything he or she says would always be the truth. If a person needs to add an oath to what they are saying, it is a sign that they have already made compromises with untruthfulness that tarnish their honesty. Why do we sometimes want to embellish what we say by adding a promise? What is the purpose of adding a promise? Some reasons might be: to assure, or to impress. What would it look like to live a life where your “Yes” is so solid that no one would ever feel the need to ask you to swear that what you are saying is true? How can we foster a world where the truth is so cherished that people don’t feel the need to make oaths? Take a step back and consider this: Jesus’s words about honesty in speech are not isolated. They appear right after he asked us to squarely confront our thought life to tame lust, and asked us to be true to our marriage commitments no matter what. He is getting at something bigger than just a series of individual character issues or types of sin. He is pointing us toward true integrity. Integrity is the characteristic of a person who is solid through and through – where the inside of the person and the outside of the person match up and demonstrate a consistent morality. When you look at them, what you see on the outside is what they actually are on the inside. What they say is actually true. What they spend their time thinking about is consistent with the ethical principles they profess. What they do is what they say they will do, and what they do is what God has taught them to do. The word “integrity” comes from a Latin word that means whole or complete in the sense of being intact, unbroken, undivided. The person of integrity is undivided. Their whole being is intact. They are one person – the same person inside and out. That is what Jesus is calling us to be. How can you cultivate a character of integrity? How might you consider changing the way you talk and act – the things you say and do – in order to ensure that integrity defines your character? How might you consider changes in your thought life, so that the you on the outside matches the you on the inside and matches what God is calling you to be inside and out? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Do you struggle with the Christian teaching that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully human? Three apostles had a visible experience of this truth. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 17:1-13 Do you struggle with the Christian teaching that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully human? Three apostles had a visible experience of this truth. Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640). The Transfiguration of Christ . Part of The Gonzaga Family in Adoration of the Holy Trinity . 1605. Cropped. The Museum of Fine Arts of Nancy, Nancy, France. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Transfiguration-Rubens.JPG . Tom Faletti June 18, 2025 Matthew 17:1-8 The Transfiguration What happens to Jesus here? There are some interesting similarities between this passage and God’s revelation of himself to Moses on Mt. Sinai, where God appeared on the seventh day in the midst of a cloud (Ex. 24) This passage follows Peter’s identification of Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah. Why does it happen now, after Peter’s declaration? How does this passage reflect who Jesus is? Is this who Jesus always has been, but it is usually hidden from us? Explain. Why does God usually not manifest himself in his glory? What is the significance of Moses and Elijah appearing with Jesus? Moses symbolizes the Law and Elijah symbolizes the prophets. The phrase “the law and the prophets” is shorthand for the whole Hebrew Scriptures (our Old Testament). Jesus has already used that phrase 3 times in Matthew (in 5:17; 7:12; and 11:13), and he will use it again in 22:40. A separate point of significance is that at the end of Elijah’s life he was taken to heaven, and therefore he was thought to be still alive, not dead in Sheol (which is why people thought he could return before the Messiah comes). Why do you think that Peter, James, and John are given this experience? What does God’s voice say from the cloud in verse 5? This voice is similar to the voice in Matthew 3:17 when Jesus is baptized. The church also came to connect it to Deuteronomy 18:15, where Moses commanded the Israelites to listen to the prophet God would raise up in the days to come. In what ways is God saying, “Listen to him” to us and the people of our time? Experiencing this miracle doesn’t protect the apostles from denying or forsaking Jesus later. The power of the moment slowly fades. Similarly, although Moses’s face shone after his encounters with God on the mountain (Ex. 34:29-35), the shine slowly faded (2 Cor. 3:12-13). Have you ever experienced the overwhelming presence of God and then later had it “wear off”? Why does this happen to us? Is it something we should expect and accept, or is there something we should do about it? Peter swings from one extreme to another – from so comfortable that he offers to make 3 tents to so overwhelmed that he cowers in fear. Is this a sign of his weakness or a sign of his amazing ability to change as he gains new knowledge? What can we learn from Peter in this story? Where would you be in this story? In verse 7, Jesus comes to them and touches them – a very down-to-earth, human gesture – and says, “Get up; don’t be afraid.” Is he telling them not to cower before God? Is there a distinction between the kind of fear of God that seemed more common in Moses’s time and the relationship Jesus wants his disciples to have with God? Read 2 Corinthians 3:12-18 , focusing particularly on verse 18. How does Paul describe us as we gaze on the glory of the Lord? How should we see ourselves in the presence of God? What is the appropriate “fear of the Lord” that is at ease with God and embraces his glory, rather than cowering before him? In what ways is Jesus saying to you, “Get up; do not be afraid?” Matthew 17:9-13 The coming of Elijah In verse 9, Jesus tells the apostles not to tell people about this vision until he is raised from the dead. Are there special moments in our experience of God that we should not try to explain to people who haven’t yet become believers in Jesus? How does Jesus connect John the Baptist to Elijah? The Jews believed that Elijah had to return before the Messiah would come. This discussion may have been important to Matthew and his community as an answer to Jews who argued that Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because Elijah had not yet returned. In verse 12, Jesus again says he is going to suffer. This is a thread throughout the second half of Matthew, starting in chapter 16. How is the fact that Jesus suffered a thread in your life? Take a step back and consider this: There can be a tendency to focus either on Christ in his glory or Jesus in his humanity, and to lose sight of the fact that he is the one, same Lord. There are many aspects of our faith where people who doubt want to see it as a series of either-or choices that we see it as both-and: Is God all-just or all-merciful? Does our faith come from God or by our own will and choice? Is Jesus fully God or fully man? Often, as in these cases, the answer is, “Both.” The challenge for (and the invitation we have from God) is to hold seemingly contradictory truths together and to seek God’s wisdom so that he can show us how they are complementary, not contradictory. For many people, it is too easy to say, “It can’t be so,” and to fail to probe deeply enough to see how God does things that go beyond our human instincts as to what is possible. Is there any part of the idea that Jesus Christ is both our glorious God and our human brother that you struggle with? Think about Jesus as he is manifested in this passage, as one person who is both the divinely transfigured, beloved Son of God and the down-to-earth, “Don’t be afraid” human teacher. Share your uncertainties with him, and “listen to him.” What does Jesus say to you about your uncertainties? How can we train our hearts and minds to not settle for simple answers that focus on one part of the faith to the exclusion of other parts, but instead to grow to maturity in our understanding (1 Cor. 2:16; 14:20; Eph. 4:13; Rom. 12:2)? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next