Chapter 2
1:52:32 minutes
Part two of a three week series on “The Synoptic Gospels: Christianity & Jesus of Nazareth.” Dr. Tim discusses vitally important topics uniquely emphasized in Matthew, such as what Jesus meant by righteousness and the role of the Law in the Matthean community. Matthew is also famous for Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. But are his ethics just an ideal, which no one can attain, or are they the concrete expectations of God for all Jesus’s disciples? What does it mean to “seek first God’s Kingdom and God’s righteousness?” And, what do commentators mean when they say, “Love is the hermeneutical key for the Law?” This very challenging Gospel, which was placed first in the New Testament canon, raises many questions that are difficult to answer, not least of which is, how we should interpret this Jewish-Christian form of Christianity today?
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"The Gospel of Matthew." In these lectures, Dr. Tim discusses vitally important topics uniquely emphasized in Matthew. For example, what did Jesus mean when he told his disciples that their righteousness needed to surpass that of the Pharisees.in order to enter the Kingdom of God (5:20)? And, why did Jesus say that he did not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfill them (5:17)? In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus raised the requirements for moral living to a higher standard than even in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). But who could ever meet his ideals? What does it mean to "seek first God's Kingdom and God's righteousness" (6:33)? And, what do commentators mean when they say, "Love is the hermeneutical key for understanding the Law?" Dr. Tim does not shy away from the tough questions raised by this challenging Gospel, which was placed first in the New Testament canon. Instead, he identifies the enduring contributions of Matthew and offers a fresh perspective on how we might best interpret this Jewish-Christian form of Christianity today.