Jesus' Ministry, per Matt, Mark & Luke (part 8)
Focus of the itinerary on this page: [17]
- For the entire itinerary, see page Ministry Itin'ry;
- In (parentheses) is the location per today's geography.
[17] AFTER CROSSING #4 <now NE>-- near & in Bethsaida; to Caesarea Philippi; to a mountain (NE Israel & SW Syria):
- near & in Bethsaida (southern Golan Heights; NE shore of the Sea);
- in villages around Caesarea Philippi (northern Golan Heights);
- transfigured on a high mountain-- & afterward;
[18] in Galilee; along the border of Galilee & Samaria; in Judea;
[19] 3rd time in Jerusalem-- mid-fall, Feast of Tabernacles:
- in Jerusalem-- halfway through the Feast, to the Temple courts;
- to the Mount of Olives (south-central West Bank)-- for 1 night;
- back in the Temple courts of Jerusalem;
- Jesus spoke again to the people; as He went along...;
[21] to Judea & surroundings (southern West Bank & E of the southern Jordan River):
- went on the other side of the Jordan R. (west-central Jordan);
- approached, entered & left Jericho, NE of Jerusalem (southeast-central West Bank);
- in Bethany on the Mount of Olives, less than 2 mi. from Jerusalem (SE of Jerusalem; south-western West Bank)-- raised Lazarus;
- in Ephraim (NE of Jerusalem; central West Bank);
- back in Bethany, 6 days before the Passover-- Jesus' feet anointed;
- came to Bethany & Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives (between Jerusalem & Bethany in the West Bank)-- 2 disciples sent;
- entered Jerusalem riding a donkey; went to the Temple area; returned to Bethany for 1 night;
- left Bethany; went back to Jerusalem, to the Temple courts;
- each: morning/day at the Temple, evening/night on the Mount of Olives;
- in Bethany 2 days before the Passover-- Jesus' head anointed;
- in Bethany(?) 1 day before the Preparation Day;
- in Jerusalem for the start of the Preparation Day-- the Feet Washing & the Lord's/Last Supper;
- across the Kidron Valley, on the Mount of Olives, during the Preparation Day-- teachings & prayers;
- back across the Kidron Valley, in the Garden of Gethsemane, also during the Preparation Day-- agony & betrayal;
- in Jerusalem, still during the Preparation Day-- arrest & "trial";
- Crucifixion & burial-- still during the Preparation Day;
- Entombment & resurrection-- near the beginning of the Passover Feast;
- Ascension-- after the Passover Feast.
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B. cont'd. (after the 2nd time in Jerusalem)
31. Peter affirmed Christ; Jesus warned his disciples [17] (2nd pt.) above
- Matt 16:13-20 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, Who do people say the Son of man is? They replied, Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; & still others, Jeremiah or 1 of the prophets. But what about You? He asked. Who do You say I am? Simon Peter in particular answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living GOD. Jesus replied, Blessed are You, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to You by man, but by My FATHER in Heaven. And I tell You that You are Peter (Peter meaning Rock), & on this Rock I will build MY Church, & the gates of Hades wii not overcome It. I will give You the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven: whatsoever You bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, & whatsoever You loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven. Then He warned His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ. For that was his "job" while walking the earth, to elicit faith via ministry. Note that unlike the Tyre-Sidon region, Caesarea Philippi was 1x part of David & Solomon's (united) kingdom & was part of Israel of the divided kingdom-- recall Jesus saying I came to the lost sheep of the house of Israel..
- Mark 8:27-30 Jesus & His disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way He asked Them, Who do people say that I am? They replied, Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; & still others, 1 of the prophets. But what about You? He asked. Who do You say that I am? Peter answered, You are the Christ. Jesus warned Them not to tell anyone about Him.
- Luke 9:18-21 Once when Jesus was praying in private & His disciples were with Him, He asked Them, Who do the crowds say I am? They replied, Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; & still others, that 1 of the prophets has come back to life. But what about You? He asked. Who do You say that I am? Peter answered, The Christ of GOD. Jesus strictly warned Them not to tell anyone.
32. Jesus' 1st telling of his death & resurrection [17] (2nd pt.) above-- this is the 1st telling (before the journey to Jerusalem for the 3rd Feast); the 2nd telling (during the journey to Jerusalem for the 3rd Feast) will be in PerMtMkLk9 B.35.; the 3rd (after the 4th Feast) will be in PerMtMkLk16 C.5. According to all 9 accounts, he was talking exclusively to his disciples. The seeming conflict below (to some anyway, who claimed nearly 1,000 contradictions in the Bible), about Jesus arising on the 3rd day "vs." after 3 days, will be resolved in PerMtMkLk16 C.5.
- Matt 16:21-28 From that time on Jesus began to explain to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem & suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests & teachers of the Law, & that He must be killed & on the 3rd day be raised to life. Peter took Him aside & began to rebuke Him. Never, Lord! He said. This shall never happen to You! Jesus turned & said to Peter, Get behind Me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to Me; You do not have in mind the Things of GOD, but the things of men. Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone would come after Me, he/she must deny himself/herself & take up his/her cross & follow Me. For whosoever wants to save his/her life will lose it, but whosoever loses his/her life for Me will find it. What good will it be for a man/woman if he/she gains the whole world, yet forfeits his/her soul? Or what can a man/woman give in exchange for his/her soul? For the Son of man is going to come in HIS FATHER'S Glory with HIS Angels, & then HE will reward each person according to what he/she has done. I introduce & tell You the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the resurrected Son of man coming in HIS Kingdom.
- Mark 8:31 - 9:1 He then began to teach Them that the Son of man must suffer many things & be rejected by the elders, chief priests & teachers of the Law, & that He must be killed & after 3 days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, & Peter took Him aside & began to rebuke Him. But when Jesus turned & looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter. Get behind Me, Satan! He said. You do not have in mind the Things of GOD, but the things of men. Then He called the crowd to Him along with His disciples & said: If anyone would come after Me, he/she must deny himself/herslf & take up his/her cross & follow Me. For whosoever wants to save his/her life will lose it, but whoever loses his/her for Me & for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man/woman gain the whole world, yet forfeit his/her soul. If anyone is ashamed of Me & My words in this adulterous & sinful generation, the Son of man will be ashamed of him/her when HE comes in HIS FATHER'S Glory with the Holy Angels. And He said to them, I tell You the truth, some of you who are standing here will not taste of death before they see the Kingdom of GOD come with power.
- Luke 9:22-27 And He said to the disciples, the Son of man must suffer many things & be rejected by the elders, chief priests & teachers of the Law, & He must be killed & on the 3rd day be raised up to life. Then He said to them all: If anyone would come after Me he/she must deny himself/herself & take up his/her cross daily & follow Me. For whoever wants to save his/her life will lose it, but whoever loses his/her life for Me will save it. What good is it for a man/woman to gain the whole world, & yet lose or forfeit his/her very self? If anyone is ashamed of Me & My words, the Son of man will be ashamed of him/her when He comes in HIS Glory & in the Glory of the FATHER & of the Holy Angels. I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of GOD.
33. Jesus transfigured on a high mountain [17] (3rd pt.) above
- Matt 17:1-13 The high mountain is traditionally called "The Mount of Transfiguration." After 6 days Jesus took with Him Peter, James & John the brother of James, & led Them up a high mountain by Themselves. There He was transfigured before Them. His face shone like the sun, & His clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before Him Moses & Elijah, talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, Lord, it is good to for Us to be here. If You wish, I will put up 3 shelters-- 1 for You, 1 for Moses & 1 for Elijah. The Mark account below has the simple explanation, that Peter did know know else to say, They were so frightened. But here: recall the shelter Jonah built for himself after he finally obeyed & preached to the city of Nineveh (though God had to inform him of the people-inhabitants therein). In particular, recall the insufficiency of the shelter, & how angry & discouraged he became when God took away the vine he had provided to make up the difference (Jon 4:1-11). In contrast, we have Peter offering to build him a shelter from the sun-glare. At least he didn't even think of himself! Closer-but-no-cigar! God has no need of being provided for-- neither defended, as we shall see Jesus restoring the ear of the high priest's servant when 1 of Jesus' companions cut it off when the soldiers came for Jesus (covered somewhat in Matt 26:51 & Mark 14:46-47; Luke 22:49-53 mentions Jesus restoring the right ear; John 18:10 specifies that the 1 of Them was Simon Peter). While He was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped Them, & a voice from the cloud said, This is MY Son I love, with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him. When the disciples heard this, They fell facedown to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came & touched Them. Get up, He said. Don't be afraid. When They looked up, They saw no 1 except Jesus. As They were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed Them, Don't tell anyone what You have seen, until the Son of man has been raised from the dead. The disciples asked Him, Why then do the teachers of the Law sat that Elijah must come 1st? To be sure, Elijah must come & will restore all things. But I tell You that Elijah has already come, & They did not recognize Him, but have done to Him everything They wished. In the same way the Son of man is going to suffer at Their hands. Then They understood that He was talking to Them about John the Baptist.
- Mark 9:2-13 After 6 days Jesus took Peter, James & John & led Them up a high mountain, where They were all alone There He was transfigured before Them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. And there appeared before Them Elijah & Moses, Who were talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good for Us to be here. Let Us put up 3 shelters-- 1 for You, 1 for Moses & 1 for Elijah. (He did not know what else to say, They were so frightened). Then a cloud appeared & enveloped Them, & a voice from the cloud: This is MYSon, whom I love. Listen to Him! Suddenly, when They looked around, They no longer saw anybody with Them except Jesus. As They were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave Them orders not to tell anyone what They had seen until the Son of man had risen from the dead. They kept the matter to themselves, discussing "what rising from the dead" meant. And They asked Him, Why do teachers of the Law say that Elijah must come 1st? Jesus replied, To be sure, Elijah does come 1st, & restores all things Why teh is it written that the Son of man must suffer much & be rejected? But I tell You , Elijah has come, & They have done to Him everything They wished, just as it is written about Him.
- Luke 9:28-36 About 8 days after Jesus had said this, introducing that some would soon see the Kingdom of God, He took Peter, John & James with Him & went up onto a mountain to pray. As He praying, the appearance of His face changed, & His clothes became as bright as a flash of lightening. 2 men, Moses & Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about His departure, which He was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter & His companions were very sleepy, but when They became fully awake, They saw His glory & the 2 men standing with Him. As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to Him, Master, it is good for Us to be here. Let Us put up 3 shelters-- 1 for You, 1 for Moses & 1 for Elijah. (He did not know what He was saying.) While He was speaking, a cloud appeared & enveloped Them, & They were afraid as They entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, This is MY Son, whom I have chosen; listen to Him. When the voice had spoken, They found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, & told no 1 at that time what They had seen.
34. The value of faith-- &, for the disciples, prayer [17] (3rd pt.) above
- Matt 17:14-21 When They descended & came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus & knelt before Him. Lord, have mercy on my son, he said. He has seizures & is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to Your disciples, but They could not heal him. O unbelieving & perverse generation, Jesus replied, how long shall I stay up with you. How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me. Jesus rebuked the demon, & it came out of the boy, & he was healed from that moment. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private & asked, Why could We not drive it out? He replied, Because You have so little faith. I tell You the truth, if You have faith as small as a mustard seed, You can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' & it will move. Nothing will be impossible for You.
- Mark 9:14-29 When They came to the other disciples, They saw a large crowd around Them & the teachers of the Law arguing with them. As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder & ran to greet Him. What are you arguing with Them about? He asked. A man in the crowd answered, Teacher, I brought You my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth & becomes rigid. I asked Your disciples to drive out the spirit, but They could not. O unbelieving generation, Jesus replied, how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to Me. So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground & rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy's father, How long has he been like this? From childhood, he answered. It has often thrown him into the fire or water to kill him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us & help us. Huh? 'If You can'? said Jesus. Everything is possible for him who believes. Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief! When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, He hurriedly rebuked the evil spirit. You deaf & mute spirit, He said, I command you, come out of him & never enter him again. The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently & came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, 'He's dead.' But Jesus took him by the hand & lifted him up to his feet, & he stood up. After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, Why couldn't We drive it out? He replied, This kind comes out only by prayer-- for it requires the supreme presence of Jesus.
- Luke 9:37-43aThe next day, when They came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Him A man in the crowd called out, Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my only child. A spirit seizes him & he suddenly screams; it throws him into a convusion so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely evert leaves him & is destroying him. I begged Your desciples to drive it out, but they could not. O unbelieving & perverse generation, Jesus replied, how long shall I stay with you & put up with you? Bring your son here. Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy & gave him back to his father. And they were all amazed at the Greatness of GOD.