Death is a common event for all mankind; with the exception of Enoch and Elijah in days of old; and of course the Lord Jesus Himself who bodily resurrected after overcoming death. The quest for immortality no doubt was initiated with the lie of the serpent in the garden after man was given a pronouncement of the death sentence after sinning by disobeying God in the garden eating the forbidden fruit of the "knowledge of good and evil" ( Gen. 2:16-17). This point cannot be overemphasized since spiritual death is implicated; and even those alive without Christ are spiritually dead. Matthew 8:22 states But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."
Nonetheless; unregenerate man cannot accept their actual condition of being dead in sins and trespasses ( Ephesians 2:1) and they certainly don't want to mortify their flesh as Romans 8:13 indicates; because that only comes through the Spirit of God not man's own vain efforts. They therefore focus on the desire to live on forever in their physical bodies; and sadly will eventually accept that which is abhorrent even to natural men at first; technological implants; genetic mutation or more generally selling out to Satan who they believe in vain to be able to deliver on his promises; not to mention actually care about the welfare of an individual.
It is pretty clear that at first; this Antichrist figure will seem like a peaceful individual. He will understand "dark sentences". Let us read Daniel 8:23-25 in entirety: I will have to put this in next post.
Wrap up of Matthew 8:10-13. Individual messages tailored to specific people is seen throughout Christ's earthly ministry. This was interspersed with preaching to the crowds such as we saw with the "Sermon on the Mount"; and the Pharisees in general as well as specific indebtments. We see yet another characteristic of living as the perfect man; in His Divine nature the Spirit was the driving force and speaking only the words of the Father as well. Therefore rather than tacitly accepting or tolerating religious hypocrisy He took it head on and often; almost exclusively at the religious Pharisees. The only time He went after someone in an attack mode was with Satan speaking through Peter about Him not dying on the cross which no doubt seemed good to Peter at the time but showed that his comfort at the way things had been blinded him; along with a man centered attempt at honoring His humanity over the Divine nature but most importantly the warnings Christ incessantly drove home. Again; these statements seemed to crop up at inopportune times and the Disciples at large were allowing themselves also to be disregarding such Prophetic utterances. No doubt this was a major irritation for Christ and we should take it as admonition for ourselves to be on guard of our hearts and be ready for His coming.
Matthew 8: 18-22 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.
19And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
20And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
21And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
22But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
This passage came after a day's end of many being healed. Jesus knew His next destination was to be traveled to and also needed rest. More next post
Matthew 8:10-13 hen Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
This passage is the postscript as it were to the Centurion as the next person to seek a healing from Jesus. In this case it was for His servant. It should be noted that to have prayer for a servant is unique in scripture and we would expect this indicates this was a man of honor who followed Biblical guidelines for His servant caring for him enough to even be bothered. His recognition of authority showed how Christ's authority was respected not to mention His time. Understanding Christ's SPIRITUAL authority was important as well. Jesus healed the servant but didn't declare it until going to a prophetic comment about children of the kingdom going to hell in verse 12. Such a statement was; to say the least unpopular especially no doubt among those who thought due to self righteousness and pride that they were superior to these "unclean" Gentiles. This was also the case with the woman who begged him even though she was referred to as a "dog" ( Matt. 15:26-27) who is also NOT a Jew but a Greek who was told she had "great faith" (verse 28).
The above paragraph regarding future events would occur frequently in the Gospels. This shows a vision and foresight that was another dimension in Christ's ministry. His own destiny to die on the cross was His earthly long term goal but His future coming and eternal plans would be delved into along with everything else that seems like random chaos.
Matthew 8:1-4 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.
2And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
3And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
4And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
Continuing on the theme of Christ as the perfect man; I realize that His Divinity runs throughout His earthly ministry becoming evident once He appeared after the temptation in the wilderness. This is where we begin chapter 8. I intend to continue with the rest of Matthew rather than piecemealing other Gospel passages for exact chronology. It is more of a Bible study but I will try to focus on the ways of Christ as I did before in an earlier post regarding the extensive challenges He met in a given day.
As usual Jesus had no time to recuperate after His time in solace of great trial before once again He had the crowds following Him around. We can assume that with His foreknowledge and prayers He was prepared in several ways. The first involved His overall long term plan to reach certain cities in the limits of His time to minister on earth; knowing that He only had a few years.
The specific cities to target are seen in later chapters to come. Overall of course He knew He would have to go to Jerusalem to die for the sins of men including His own Apostles. Second; He had plans for a given day; which as we will see at the end of the chapter would be to cast demons out of 2 men on the other side of the lake. No doubt He was "prayed up" for this. There were individual things that occurred in His travels such as this leper mentioned in verses 2-4.
This verse repeats what we see in other passages in verse 4 to NOT broadcast this miracle but to go to the Priest for confirmation.
2 Timothy 2:17 - And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
The word canker (GAGGRAINA) is the Greek word for gang green. If you listen to enough people who are not teaching the truth, your soul will not be healthy. It will be diseased. Hymenaeus and Philetus were two people who began to teach something that was different than what Paul said.
2 Timothy 2:21 - If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.
The word purge is the word cleanse, himself from these things, that is, these iniquities, he shall be a vessel for honor,
3 things: Having been sanctified (set apart). And meet (more literally useful), for the master. And thirdly, prepared unto every good work. Again, the word good is AGATHOS which has to do with spiritual good. The one who comes for cleansing and confessing his sins, will be a vessel of honor, set apart by God for His use, and prepared for every good work that God has for them.
2 Timothy 3:1 - This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
He says this know. That's a command. In the last days perilous times shall come. The word perilous is translated variously by the word danger or difficult, and the Greek word itself, CHALEPOS, means more than just difficult times.
The other place in which this word perilous is found is in Matthew 8:28. This is when Jesus came across the lake to the other side of the country of the Gergesenes. And there met Him two possessed with devils coming out of the tombs. These were two men who were demon possessed, exceeding fierce (CHALEPOS). It means to be fierce, or harsh. It describes the activity of demons. In the last days, it's not just going to be difficult times. It's going to be fierce. It's going to be harsh. He gives the reason starting in Verse 2, as he lists for us 18 characteristics of people in the last days.
Matthew 8:26 - And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
Jesus gets up and He rebukes. He says to them, why are ye fearful? The word fearful in Greek is not the word for fear. It's a word that means to be without courage. This could be better translated, "Why are you without courage, O little faith ones?"
Matthew 9:17 - Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.
The word bottle is the word skins. These are not bottles that we know.
Matthew 9:32 - As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.
When He went out, they brought to him a dumb man (somebody who couldn't speak). The Greek word would be translated MUTE. His condition was that he was demonized. He was mute because of the demon.
Matthew 10:16 - Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
The word "harmless" in the Greek means artless. It literally means don't use your own ingenuity. In other words, God is not impressed when we use our ideas to do His work. Be wise as serpents. How is the serpent wise? Well, he is very alert and he watches and doesn't make quick reactions. We are to observe and be artless as doves. Jesus said that's the kind of person I will use.
Matthew 12:20 - A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
These are long stemmed reeds that are hollow on the inside, and they break really easy. So, when Jesus comes upon somebody that has a very frail weak condition like one of these weeds, He's not going to break them. He is going to help them.
A smoking flax is a wick of a lamp that is smoldering, but it's not lit.
Matthew 8:16 - When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
It says when evening had come, and the other gospel writers tell us that this was the Sabbath when Peter's mother-in-law was healed. So, at six o'clock, at sundown, they brought many who were possessed with devils.
The condition: Those three words "possessed with devils," are represented by one Greek word. In fact, never in the Greek text does it say demon possession. It just says "demonized." It is just one word, demonized.
Matthew 8:17 - That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
This, you may already know. But in the King James text, and we see this in Chapter 1 with what we call the ancestry line, the lineage, in that the King James text, when it mentions names, it's a transliteration of the Greek word. For instance, in Matthew Chapter 1, it talks about Tamar. King James says Thamar and that is because that is the Greek word, Thamar. And so, when it's making reference to Isaiah, he says Esaias because that is the Greek word, but he is talking about Isaiah the prophet. Just general information!
Matthew 8:24 - And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.
Here's something we may not catch in our English text:
Here are the circumstances. They got in the boat, and there arose a great "tempest" in the sea. The word tempest is the Greek word SEISMOS. It's where our English word seismic comes from. What this text is telling us is that there was a great earthquake in the sea, so much that the ship was covered with the waves. It wasn't just raining and the boat filling up.
Reading this in English, we see "great tempest" and big waves, but we don't realize that an earthquake was the cause!
Matthew 8:5 - And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,
Notice the person that's coming. He is a centurion. A centurion is a Roman soldier. He is a Gentile. The word centurion means 100. He is the commander of 100 men. And the centurion is in charge of the garrison of Roman soldiers there in Capernaum. Just general information I wanted to share.
Matthew 8:6 - And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.
This phrase "sick of the palsy" is one Greek word (PARALUTIKOS) which means paralytic. This is the condition of his servant. So, this centurion comes, beseeching him, and saying that his servant lies home sick of the palsy. He is a paralytic. He's paralyzed and he's grievously tormented. This is where I believe the translators could have given us a better understanding in their translation by saying, "my servant lieth at home paralyzed, grievously tormented. I am not saying that the translation is wrong, but I'll leave it up to you to decide whether saying "sick of the palsy" or "paralyzed" would mean more to us in our English text.
Matthew 8:15 - And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.
Here we see the completeness. Jesus touched her, and the fever left her. Notice the completeness in that the fever left her. He touched her hand, the fever left her, and she rose up and ministered unto Him.
Here is something you may not catch without going to the Greek text. The word ministered in Greek, DIAKANOS, is the verb form of our English word deacon. It is the verb form; therefore, it is not calling her a deacon. But it's describing her serving. And it's in the Imperfect Tense which means that she rose up immediately and the fever was gone.
17The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.
And JESUS said (around 2000 years ago): let the dead (they which have not the Spirit of GOD, Spirit of life) bury their dead. Matthew 8:17
Daniel 12:1-2 combined with 1Thessalonians 4:16
Michael comes first, and after of him comes Lord JESUS.
12:1 at that time(at this current time, or at this Day, the Lord's Day, the seventh and last Day/millennium)shall Michael (the archangel) stand up, ...
12:2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake (RESURRECTION), some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
1 Thes.4:15- For this we say unto you by the Word of the Lord (the Word is GOD, self-executing), that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent(precede) them which are asleep.
1 Thes. 4:16 For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel-Michael- , and with the Trump of GOD: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
And 1Corinthians 15:51-54 reveal:
51 Behold, I shew you a mystery;We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,(Compare with Philippians 3:20-21)
52 ...at the last trump:for the trumpet shall sound,and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,and we shall be changed.
(the trumpet shall sound:Re.11:15-And the seventh angel sounded;and there were great voices in heaven(heaven??? Ephesians 1:3-8), saying, The kingdoms OF THIS WORLD are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. Matthew 5:5-JESUS said: Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth).
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. (CAUGHT???)
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written,Death is swallowed up in victory.-Hallelujaaaah!!!
Luke 15:10 states that there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents among angels. It also says there is more joy there than in 99 who need no repentance (verse 7) in heaven; which should signify among the Godhead as well.
I hesitate to get into the positive aspects of God's demeanor for one thing because of the admonitions in Ecclesiastes 7:2. Our true joy should come to us as it did for our Lord described as a "man of sorrows" ( Isaiah 53:3). He rejoiced in doing the Father's will; which at times no doubt coincided with certain acts such as the water turning into wine and with seeing the great faith of just two people mentioned in scripture; the woman who begged for the "crumbs under the table" ( Matthew 15:28) and the verse about the Roman Centurion ( Matthew 8:5-9). In the first case; and likely the second these individuals were not Jews which makes these things even more remarkable. As I said before even the Temple was a place that caused indignation because He was zealous for God's house to be free of money making during the Sabbath (there were at least 2 purgings there in the Bible; perhaps 3).
Another thing today; of course related to God's disposition of rejoicing over us; or His love and blessings is how twisted the mindset of the church is. We cannot have a God of perfect love without Him also having a perfect and Holy indignation. True love rejoices over the truth ( 1 Cor. 13:6). And of course greater love has no man than dying for His friends ( John 15:13). It is from love that God saves us as well as chastises His own. It seems many today want to remain immature in their faith and insensitive to the Spirit calling them; oftentimes through other believers or even the observations of nonbelievers in their lives.
Being born again should be the beginning of the story not the end for this life because this world is the only opportunity we will have to grow in sanctification and to earn imperishable rewards (or lose them).
For it has been granted to you not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him (Phillipians 1:29). Acts 5:41 is in a similar vein; namely being thankful for being worthy to be persecuted in His name; which is promised for all true believers. ( 2 Tim. 3:12; etal). The promise of being chastised if we are a true child of God and other sufferings aren't exactly the first thing we focus on
when it comes to God's promises. But of course if we consider these hard sayings first; we can learn to appreciate the more pleasurable promises in a greater way.
The opposite is true of course; in light of Hebrews 11:25. Sin runs its course of earthly pleasures; which lead up to eternal condemnation. For God's children; however there are pleasures evermore in His right hand ( Psalm 16:11). The fullness of life is also mentioned in that verse which corresponds with John 10:10 in living life to the full. Food and clothing are promised in the Gospels ( Matt. 6:25); (compare with 1 Kings 17:6 where the ravens brought Elijah food). Notice that shelter or a place to rest His head is mentioned as lacking in Matthew 8:20; which made some turn away from following Him. Surely Christ Himself did stay in peoples' homes for short interludes; but He also spent many nights on mountains in prayer; or sleeping on a boat.
Much prayer; of course seems to be edifying when focused on fulfilling the Great Commission. God states in Isaiah 55:11; that His word will not go out void; but accomplish His purposes. If we are doing His work; then we can be sure to reap what we sow; in terms of reward (see Psalm 126:5). Heavenly treasures are a promise for those who are serving out of a pure heart (see 2 Timothy 4:7-8). Therefore; the end ouf our sufferings in Christ will bring eternal glory that outweighs anything on earth. (see Romans 8:18). 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 also discusses "momentary afflictions" that don't compare to heavenly bliss.
No scripture of itself interprets scripture, it takes other scriptures combined together to interpret truth.
1 John 3:9 Whosoever is born of God CANNOT commit sin, for his SEED (GOD) remaineth in him, and he CANNOT SIN because he is born of God.
Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my Spirit (God is Spirit) in YOU and CAUSE you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgements and DO them.
The kingdom of God only COMES to you if you believe what the word says.
Matthew 12:28 But if I (the Spirit of TRUTH) cast out devils (the spirit of deception) by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has COME unto you.
Was Paul saying something different; or, was he agreeing agreeing that is GOD IN YOU; HIS flesh and bone, that keeps you from sinning and not of yourself (your DEAD) only a NEW CREATION exist.
When you BELIEVE you are going to keep sinning in this life, then your going to keep sinning.
Matthew 8:13 .... and as thou hast BELIEVE, so be it done unto you ........
Do you BELIEVE you are a NEW CREATION, the flesh and bone OF CHRIST?
John 17:22 And the glory that thou has given me, I have GIVEN them, that they may be ONE as we are ONE.
If you don't believe that scripture, then the Kingdom of God has not YET COME to you.
I'm hoping GOD pulled through for you with shelter over your head. I had a dream last night that I was asking a US retired Marine, to show me how to survive outside, without freezing. I was weeping, (because our situation is dire in real life & in the dream) he started to show me & started to set things up, upon a sheltered rock. I declared urgently "Wait! I have 3 children, this needs to protect them too!" Then he picked the materials up & the situation changed. Later in the dream, I was holding that retired Marine in my arms weightlessly up in water & helping baptize him. Leading him in the walk of a believer in the LORD & Word of GOD. The leader that was supposed to be doing the baptism seemed to be saying things & doing things wrongly. I quickly submerged the Marine under water declaring scripture. He stayed very close to me until a woman needed my help. Then I went with her, helping her fight the evil attacks against her. I'm not sure what the dreams I've been having mean fully, but I came across your prayer request again & I'm going out on a limb thinking it may be connected. I believe many of us that help here on this site, will pray about dire situations but don't have a response we feel is good enough encouragement to post. I have pondered scripture & prayer for you a couple of times. I've even tried to reach out to Samaritan's Purse Ministry on your behalf but my message failed to send in their platform.
We're in a difficult season to say the least. We will make it through these times! I believe it! We need each other in these times & in the days & years ahead. This is a place like: Philippians 2, Philippians 3:10-21, Romans 12:1-13, Ephesians 3:16-21, 2Timothy 2:1-3, James 5:10-11, 2Corinthians 11:25-27, Matthew 8:19-20,
I was reassured in my spirit, these difficult oppressive moments I'm facing are for others. It's a bigger better plan. 2Corinthians 4, Psalms 139, Psalms 37,
Jesus was the fulfillment of Scripture in the Old Testament. Luke 24:19-27, Psalms 22, Isaiah 53, Zechariah 13:6, & many more.
The Holy Scriptures are broken down in Books & Separated by New Testament & Old Testament, none of which have been accredited as authored by Jesus. However many believe all were written about Jesus (redemption ) The Old Testament is before Jesus was born. The New Testament begins with Jesus birth, death on cross, resurrection from the grave, the witnessed accounts of Jesus life, ministry, miracles. Then continues the Good News os Salvation & ministry of the Church. Christians & Messianic Jews believe in the New Testament as Christ The Messiah the promised everlasting savior. Psalms 93:2, 1Kings 9:5, Zechariah 6:12-13, Psalms 89:3,4, 1Chronicles 17:11-27, Hebrews 8,
Matthew 8:4, Jesus obeyed scripture, Mark 1:44, & Jesus parents on Earth obeyed scripture, Luke 2:22,
Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit = Luke 11, John 20:21-22, Luke 12, Acts 1:5, John 14:16,26, John 15:26,
Sorry Parker , I probably should have given you some sort of scriptural reference to prop up my previous answer to you , I need to be more conscientious about doing that , try reading Ephesians chapter two , verses 1 - 6 , hope that's better .
Hello Parker. The Matthew 8:21,22 reference ties in with Luke 9:57-62. This disciple (not of the twelve), wanted to follow Jesus wherever he went but wasn't prepared to leave everything at once to do so. What he was asking of Jesus was if he could follow Jesus after his father had died (i.e. when his earthly responsibilities to his family were completed) & he was free to leave.
And so Jesus' response to this was, 'leave those matters to those who are concerned with them & who don't wish to follow me and learn of me - but if you're serious, then come follow Me now'. One might think that Jesus was a little hard on this man, but the message was, that time cannot be wasted on matters that others can take care of; and if we procrastinate on important matters now, we might just eventually lose interest in pursuing it altogether. Words matter little - Jesus required action as well - an immediate response, for His time was short.
They are dead in sin , Christians are alive in Christ because we have been cleansed from our sin by Christ's willing sacrifice , those who reject Christ for whatever reason i.e. they are atheists or idolators , they are dead already . Life comes through Christ .
Matthew 8:17 and 1 Peter 2:24 makes us understand that by His stripes we are healed, therefore I declare healing upon you right now In Jesus Name. Amen!
Matthew 7:7 says Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you and Psalms 5:12 says For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield. I pray for you as you step out in search of a job, the favour of God shall compass you and you get that job that you seek In Jesus Name. Amen!
My understanding is the arm of the LORD revealed was for Israel and Jesus came for the lost sheep of Israel Matt. 15:24 and fulfill the law and the prophets, Matt. 26:54.
John 12:37-41 But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him: 38 That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed 39 Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, 40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. 41 These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.
Also, there is Matthew 8:14-17 Luke 22:35-38Acts 8:26-35Romans 10:11-21.
This site has a free download under "More" tab. You can also read the Standard KJV & 1611 version online on this site. Just click the version you want to read, then there are options for searching, books, chapters, words, phrases, names
If you click on this: Luke 1, it should take you straight to scripture & John 3:16, should be highlighted in red
That's 1 way to look at it. Day definition as span of time. Psalms 90:4, 2Peter 3:8,
Genesis 3, Also a Spiritual death, that happened immediately, the results of which were immediate fear, instead of trust to their creator. Feeling naked before GOD, & man etc. Matthew 8:22, Luke 9:60, Romans 5:12-21,
Hi karla. That's a good question & to add to the confusion, I'll throw in Numbers 10:29.
In Exodus 2:18, we read his name as Reuel & this means "friend of El (God)". This was very likely his given name.
In Exodus 3:1, Jethro (or, Yithro) is from the word, 'Yether', meaning 'his excellence'. So it seems that Jethro is the same person as Reuel, but Reuel was his given name & Jethro may have been a secondary name or honorific title that others might have called him by. As an example from the New Testament, we read of Simon who was also known as Peter ( Matthew 4:18); again known by two names (Simon, Luke 22:31; Peter, Matthew 8:14; Simon Peter, John 13:6).
Then in Numbers 10:29, some believe that Hobab is yet another name for Reuel/Jethro, adding to the confusion, and so several opinions have been given to interpret that 'anomaly'. However, I see it simply as: that Hobab was Reuel's (or Raguel's) son, as Raguel (Reuel) was Moses' father-in-law. This type of family tree descriptions can also be found in many other passages, including 1 Chronicles 5:14, Nehemiah 11:7.
I'm happy to offer my opinion. We can and should worship God every day, but many churches choose Sunday as a day to worship I believe because the first century church met on the first day of the week- Sunday. Read Acts 20:7. Since that is an example we are given, surely that's a good time to meet.
For your 2nd question, can you please provide scripture with the east/west that you believe is confusing? Christmas- I don't know. I kind of doubt Dec 25 was the correct day Jesus was born. But we also don't know the exact place in Bethlehem or elevation Jesus was born. There are many variables.
What some Roman guy or Catholic said or did carries no weight or credibility. The fact is Acts 20:7 said long before them that they met on the first day of the week so its not wrong to gather that day.
As for 666, people into numerology can make any book have the same 'coincidences' through enough research, but this is merely confirmation bias. It's similar to the birthday paradox how it seems illogical and almost like a conspiracy how with so few people you have 2 or more with the same birthday. It's a cute party trick just like the 666. It's equally likely to find 555 or 444 or any other sequence if one crunches enough numbers, but it doesn't mean anything. If some day I see people funneled into taking a mark with 666 on it then I will know with certainty that is something to avoid, but someone doing a little trickery to make a coincidence seem like its not is insignificant in my opinion. God bless.
"And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven."
Blessings
Death is a common event for all mankind; with the exception of Enoch and Elijah in days of old; and of course the Lord Jesus Himself who bodily resurrected after overcoming death. The quest for immortality no doubt was initiated with the lie of the serpent in the garden after man was given a pronouncement of the death sentence after sinning by disobeying God in the garden eating the forbidden fruit of the "knowledge of good and evil" ( Gen. 2:16-17). This point cannot be overemphasized since spiritual death is implicated; and even those alive without Christ are spiritually dead. Matthew 8:22 states But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."
Nonetheless; unregenerate man cannot accept their actual condition of being dead in sins and trespasses ( Ephesians 2:1) and they certainly don't want to mortify their flesh as Romans 8:13 indicates; because that only comes through the Spirit of God not man's own vain efforts. They therefore focus on the desire to live on forever in their physical bodies; and sadly will eventually accept that which is abhorrent even to natural men at first; technological implants; genetic mutation or more generally selling out to Satan who they believe in vain to be able to deliver on his promises; not to mention actually care about the welfare of an individual.
It is pretty clear that at first; this Antichrist figure will seem like a peaceful individual. He will understand "dark sentences". Let us read Daniel 8:23-25 in entirety: I will have to put this in next post.
Matthew 8: 18-22 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.
19And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
20And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
21And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
22But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
This passage came after a day's end of many being healed. Jesus knew His next destination was to be traveled to and also needed rest. More next post
11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
This passage is the postscript as it were to the Centurion as the next person to seek a healing from Jesus. In this case it was for His servant. It should be noted that to have prayer for a servant is unique in scripture and we would expect this indicates this was a man of honor who followed Biblical guidelines for His servant caring for him enough to even be bothered. His recognition of authority showed how Christ's authority was respected not to mention His time. Understanding Christ's SPIRITUAL authority was important as well. Jesus healed the servant but didn't declare it until going to a prophetic comment about children of the kingdom going to hell in verse 12. Such a statement was; to say the least unpopular especially no doubt among those who thought due to self righteousness and pride that they were superior to these "unclean" Gentiles. This was also the case with the woman who begged him even though she was referred to as a "dog" ( Matt. 15:26-27) who is also NOT a Jew but a Greek who was told she had "great faith" (verse 28).
The above paragraph regarding future events would occur frequently in the Gospels. This shows a vision and foresight that was another dimension in Christ's ministry. His own destiny to die on the cross was His earthly long term goal but His future coming and eternal plans would be delved into along with everything else that seems like random chaos.
2And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
3And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
4And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
Continuing on the theme of Christ as the perfect man; I realize that His Divinity runs throughout His earthly ministry becoming evident once He appeared after the temptation in the wilderness. This is where we begin chapter 8. I intend to continue with the rest of Matthew rather than piecemealing other Gospel passages for exact chronology. It is more of a Bible study but I will try to focus on the ways of Christ as I did before in an earlier post regarding the extensive challenges He met in a given day.
As usual Jesus had no time to recuperate after His time in solace of great trial before once again He had the crowds following Him around. We can assume that with His foreknowledge and prayers He was prepared in several ways. The first involved His overall long term plan to reach certain cities in the limits of His time to minister on earth; knowing that He only had a few years.
The specific cities to target are seen in later chapters to come. Overall of course He knew He would have to go to Jerusalem to die for the sins of men including His own Apostles. Second; He had plans for a given day; which as we will see at the end of the chapter would be to cast demons out of 2 men on the other side of the lake. No doubt He was "prayed up" for this. There were individual things that occurred in His travels such as this leper mentioned in verses 2-4.
This verse repeats what we see in other passages in verse 4 to NOT broadcast this miracle but to go to the Priest for confirmation.
2 Timothy 2:17 - And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
The word canker (GAGGRAINA) is the Greek word for gang green. If you listen to enough people who are not teaching the truth, your soul will not be healthy. It will be diseased. Hymenaeus and Philetus were two people who began to teach something that was different than what Paul said.
2 Timothy 2:21 - If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.
The word purge is the word cleanse, himself from these things, that is, these iniquities, he shall be a vessel for honor,
3 things: Having been sanctified (set apart). And meet (more literally useful), for the master. And thirdly, prepared unto every good work. Again, the word good is AGATHOS which has to do with spiritual good. The one who comes for cleansing and confessing his sins, will be a vessel of honor, set apart by God for His use, and prepared for every good work that God has for them.
2 Timothy 3:1 - This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
He says this know. That's a command. In the last days perilous times shall come. The word perilous is translated variously by the word danger or difficult, and the Greek word itself, CHALEPOS, means more than just difficult times.
The other place in which this word perilous is found is in Matthew 8:28. This is when Jesus came across the lake to the other side of the country of the Gergesenes. And there met Him two possessed with devils coming out of the tombs. These were two men who were demon possessed, exceeding fierce (CHALEPOS). It means to be fierce, or harsh. It describes the activity of demons. In the last days, it's not just going to be difficult times. It's going to be fierce. It's going to be harsh. He gives the reason starting in Verse 2, as he lists for us 18 characteristics of people in the last days.
Matthew 8:26 - And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
Jesus gets up and He rebukes. He says to them, why are ye fearful? The word fearful in Greek is not the word for fear. It's a word that means to be without courage. This could be better translated, "Why are you without courage, O little faith ones?"
Matthew 9:17 - Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.
The word bottle is the word skins. These are not bottles that we know.
Matthew 9:32 - As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.
When He went out, they brought to him a dumb man (somebody who couldn't speak). The Greek word would be translated MUTE. His condition was that he was demonized. He was mute because of the demon.
Matthew 10:16 - Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
The word "harmless" in the Greek means artless. It literally means don't use your own ingenuity. In other words, God is not impressed when we use our ideas to do His work. Be wise as serpents. How is the serpent wise? Well, he is very alert and he watches and doesn't make quick reactions. We are to observe and be artless as doves. Jesus said that's the kind of person I will use.
Matthew 12:20 - A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
These are long stemmed reeds that are hollow on the inside, and they break really easy. So, when Jesus comes upon somebody that has a very frail weak condition like one of these weeds, He's not going to break them. He is going to help them.
A smoking flax is a wick of a lamp that is smoldering, but it's not lit.
Matthew 8:16 - When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
It says when evening had come, and the other gospel writers tell us that this was the Sabbath when Peter's mother-in-law was healed. So, at six o'clock, at sundown, they brought many who were possessed with devils.
The condition: Those three words "possessed with devils," are represented by one Greek word. In fact, never in the Greek text does it say demon possession. It just says "demonized." It is just one word, demonized.
Matthew 8:17 - That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
This, you may already know. But in the King James text, and we see this in Chapter 1 with what we call the ancestry line, the lineage, in that the King James text, when it mentions names, it's a transliteration of the Greek word. For instance, in Matthew Chapter 1, it talks about Tamar. King James says Thamar and that is because that is the Greek word, Thamar. And so, when it's making reference to Isaiah, he says Esaias because that is the Greek word, but he is talking about Isaiah the prophet. Just general information!
Matthew 8:24 - And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.
Here's something we may not catch in our English text:
Here are the circumstances. They got in the boat, and there arose a great "tempest" in the sea. The word tempest is the Greek word SEISMOS. It's where our English word seismic comes from. What this text is telling us is that there was a great earthquake in the sea, so much that the ship was covered with the waves. It wasn't just raining and the boat filling up.
Reading this in English, we see "great tempest" and big waves, but we don't realize that an earthquake was the cause!
Matthew 8:5 - And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,
Notice the person that's coming. He is a centurion. A centurion is a Roman soldier. He is a Gentile. The word centurion means 100. He is the commander of 100 men. And the centurion is in charge of the garrison of Roman soldiers there in Capernaum. Just general information I wanted to share.
Matthew 8:6 - And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.
This phrase "sick of the palsy" is one Greek word (PARALUTIKOS) which means paralytic. This is the condition of his servant. So, this centurion comes, beseeching him, and saying that his servant lies home sick of the palsy. He is a paralytic. He's paralyzed and he's grievously tormented. This is where I believe the translators could have given us a better understanding in their translation by saying, "my servant lieth at home paralyzed, grievously tormented. I am not saying that the translation is wrong, but I'll leave it up to you to decide whether saying "sick of the palsy" or "paralyzed" would mean more to us in our English text.
Matthew 8:15 - And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.
Here we see the completeness. Jesus touched her, and the fever left her. Notice the completeness in that the fever left her. He touched her hand, the fever left her, and she rose up and ministered unto Him.
Here is something you may not catch without going to the Greek text. The word ministered in Greek, DIAKANOS, is the verb form of our English word deacon. It is the verb form; therefore, it is not calling her a deacon. But it's describing her serving. And it's in the Imperfect Tense which means that she rose up immediately and the fever was gone.
17The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.
And JESUS said (around 2000 years ago): let the dead (they which have not the Spirit of GOD, Spirit of life) bury their dead. Matthew 8:17
Daniel 12:1-2 combined with 1Thessalonians 4:16
Michael comes first, and after of him comes Lord JESUS.
12:1 at that time(at this current time, or at this Day, the Lord's Day, the seventh and last Day/millennium)shall Michael (the archangel) stand up, ...
12:2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake (RESURRECTION), some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
1 Thes.4:15- For this we say unto you by the Word of the Lord (the Word is GOD, self-executing), that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent(precede) them which are asleep.
1 Thes. 4:16 For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel-Michael- , and with the Trump of GOD: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
And 1Corinthians 15:51-54 reveal:
51 Behold, I shew you a mystery;We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,(Compare with Philippians 3:20-21)
52 ...at the last trump:for the trumpet shall sound,and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,and we shall be changed.
(the trumpet shall sound:Re.11:15-And the seventh angel sounded;and there were great voices in heaven(heaven??? Ephesians 1:3-8), saying, The kingdoms OF THIS WORLD are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. Matthew 5:5-JESUS said: Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth).
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. (CAUGHT???)
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written,Death is swallowed up in victory.-Hallelujaaaah!!!
Get ready --> Matthew 25:10
Luke 15:10 states that there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents among angels. It also says there is more joy there than in 99 who need no repentance (verse 7) in heaven; which should signify among the Godhead as well.
I hesitate to get into the positive aspects of God's demeanor for one thing because of the admonitions in Ecclesiastes 7:2. Our true joy should come to us as it did for our Lord described as a "man of sorrows" ( Isaiah 53:3). He rejoiced in doing the Father's will; which at times no doubt coincided with certain acts such as the water turning into wine and with seeing the great faith of just two people mentioned in scripture; the woman who begged for the "crumbs under the table" ( Matthew 15:28) and the verse about the Roman Centurion ( Matthew 8:5-9). In the first case; and likely the second these individuals were not Jews which makes these things even more remarkable. As I said before even the Temple was a place that caused indignation because He was zealous for God's house to be free of money making during the Sabbath (there were at least 2 purgings there in the Bible; perhaps 3).
Another thing today; of course related to God's disposition of rejoicing over us; or His love and blessings is how twisted the mindset of the church is. We cannot have a God of perfect love without Him also having a perfect and Holy indignation. True love rejoices over the truth ( 1 Cor. 13:6). And of course greater love has no man than dying for His friends ( John 15:13). It is from love that God saves us as well as chastises His own. It seems many today want to remain immature in their faith and insensitive to the Spirit calling them; oftentimes through other believers or even the observations of nonbelievers in their lives.
Being born again should be the beginning of the story not the end for this life because this world is the only opportunity we will have to grow in sanctification and to earn imperishable rewards (or lose them).
As you said "An unbeliever is ALREADY dead! Yet he is still continuous".
Matthew 8:21-22
21 And another of his disciples said unto Him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
You don't have to pray to God to give you his BODY,
It's already DONE, just give him thanks for HIS WORKS, you just have to suffer in this flesh for his sake, for an appointed time.
Our hope is not in this age, but the age to come, after we are harvested by his angels.
1 Timothy 6:16 ... Christ ONLY hath IMMORTALITY ....
1 Corinthians 15:53 .... this mortal (you) shall PUT ON IMMORTALITY ......
1 Corinthians 15:38 ... to ever SEED Christ OWN BODY ......
Matthew 8:13 ..... Be it done unto you as you BELIEVE ......
God Bless YOU!
Do you BELIEVE you are dead to sin?
Matthew 8:13 And Jesus said ..... Go thy way, and as thou has BELIEVED, so it BE DONE UNTO THEE, and his servant was healed the selfsame hour.
Philippians 1:29 For unto you IT IS GIVEN on the behalf of Christ to not only BELIEVE but to suffer for his sake;
God Bless YOU!
For it has been granted to you not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him (Phillipians 1:29). Acts 5:41 is in a similar vein; namely being thankful for being worthy to be persecuted in His name; which is promised for all true believers. ( 2 Tim. 3:12; etal). The promise of being chastised if we are a true child of God and other sufferings aren't exactly the first thing we focus on
when it comes to God's promises. But of course if we consider these hard sayings first; we can learn to appreciate the more pleasurable promises in a greater way.
The opposite is true of course; in light of Hebrews 11:25. Sin runs its course of earthly pleasures; which lead up to eternal condemnation. For God's children; however there are pleasures evermore in His right hand ( Psalm 16:11). The fullness of life is also mentioned in that verse which corresponds with John 10:10 in living life to the full. Food and clothing are promised in the Gospels ( Matt. 6:25); (compare with 1 Kings 17:6 where the ravens brought Elijah food). Notice that shelter or a place to rest His head is mentioned as lacking in Matthew 8:20; which made some turn away from following Him. Surely Christ Himself did stay in peoples' homes for short interludes; but He also spent many nights on mountains in prayer; or sleeping on a boat.
Much prayer; of course seems to be edifying when focused on fulfilling the Great Commission. God states in Isaiah 55:11; that His word will not go out void; but accomplish His purposes. If we are doing His work; then we can be sure to reap what we sow; in terms of reward (see Psalm 126:5). Heavenly treasures are a promise for those who are serving out of a pure heart (see 2 Timothy 4:7-8). Therefore; the end ouf our sufferings in Christ will bring eternal glory that outweighs anything on earth. (see Romans 8:18). 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 also discusses "momentary afflictions" that don't compare to heavenly bliss.
1 John 3:9 Whosoever is born of God CANNOT commit sin, for his SEED (GOD) remaineth in him, and he CANNOT SIN because he is born of God.
Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my Spirit (God is Spirit) in YOU and CAUSE you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgements and DO them.
The kingdom of God only COMES to you if you believe what the word says.
Matthew 12:28 But if I (the Spirit of TRUTH) cast out devils (the spirit of deception) by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has COME unto you.
Was Paul saying something different; or, was he agreeing agreeing that is GOD IN YOU; HIS flesh and bone, that keeps you from sinning and not of yourself (your DEAD) only a NEW CREATION exist.
When you BELIEVE you are going to keep sinning in this life, then your going to keep sinning.
Matthew 8:13 .... and as thou hast BELIEVE, so be it done unto you ........
Do you BELIEVE you are a NEW CREATION, the flesh and bone OF CHRIST?
John 17:22 And the glory that thou has given me, I have GIVEN them, that they may be ONE as we are ONE.
If you don't believe that scripture, then the Kingdom of God has not YET COME to you.
God bless you
I'm hoping GOD pulled through for you with shelter over your head. I had a dream last night that I was asking a US retired Marine, to show me how to survive outside, without freezing. I was weeping, (because our situation is dire in real life & in the dream) he started to show me & started to set things up, upon a sheltered rock. I declared urgently "Wait! I have 3 children, this needs to protect them too!" Then he picked the materials up & the situation changed. Later in the dream, I was holding that retired Marine in my arms weightlessly up in water & helping baptize him. Leading him in the walk of a believer in the LORD & Word of GOD. The leader that was supposed to be doing the baptism seemed to be saying things & doing things wrongly. I quickly submerged the Marine under water declaring scripture. He stayed very close to me until a woman needed my help. Then I went with her, helping her fight the evil attacks against her. I'm not sure what the dreams I've been having mean fully, but I came across your prayer request again & I'm going out on a limb thinking it may be connected. I believe many of us that help here on this site, will pray about dire situations but don't have a response we feel is good enough encouragement to post. I have pondered scripture & prayer for you a couple of times. I've even tried to reach out to Samaritan's Purse Ministry on your behalf but my message failed to send in their platform.
We're in a difficult season to say the least. We will make it through these times! I believe it! We need each other in these times & in the days & years ahead. This is a place like: Philippians 2, Philippians 3:10-21, Romans 12:1-13, Ephesians 3:16-21, 2Timothy 2:1-3, James 5:10-11, 2Corinthians 11:25-27, Matthew 8:19-20,
I was reassured in my spirit, these difficult oppressive moments I'm facing are for others. It's a bigger better plan. 2Corinthians 4, Psalms 139, Psalms 37,
Hopefully these are all helpful
The Holy Scriptures are broken down in Books & Separated by New Testament & Old Testament, none of which have been accredited as authored by Jesus. However many believe all were written about Jesus (redemption ) The Old Testament is before Jesus was born. The New Testament begins with Jesus birth, death on cross, resurrection from the grave, the witnessed accounts of Jesus life, ministry, miracles. Then continues the Good News os Salvation & ministry of the Church. Christians & Messianic Jews believe in the New Testament as Christ The Messiah the promised everlasting savior. Psalms 93:2, 1Kings 9:5, Zechariah 6:12-13, Psalms 89:3,4, 1Chronicles 17:11-27, Hebrews 8,
Matthew 8:4, Jesus obeyed scripture, Mark 1:44, & Jesus parents on Earth obeyed scripture, Luke 2:22,
Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit = Luke 11, John 20:21-22, Luke 12, Acts 1:5, John 14:16,26, John 15:26,
2Timothy 3:16
Hope these are helpful
And so Jesus' response to this was, 'leave those matters to those who are concerned with them & who don't wish to follow me and learn of me - but if you're serious, then come follow Me now'. One might think that Jesus was a little hard on this man, but the message was, that time cannot be wasted on matters that others can take care of; and if we procrastinate on important matters now, we might just eventually lose interest in pursuing it altogether. Words matter little - Jesus required action as well - an immediate response, for His time was short.
James 2:13, Luke 9:58, Matthew 8:20, Luke 2:7, Hebrews 4:15-16
Hopefully this is encouraging
Matthew 7:7 says Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you and Psalms 5:12 says For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield. I pray for you as you step out in search of a job, the favour of God shall compass you and you get that job that you seek In Jesus Name. Amen!
God bless you
My understanding is the arm of the LORD revealed was for Israel and Jesus came for the lost sheep of Israel Matt. 15:24 and fulfill the law and the prophets, Matt. 26:54.
John 12:37-41 But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him: 38 That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed 39 Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, 40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. 41 These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.
Also, there is Matthew 8:14-17 Luke 22:35-38 Acts 8:26-35 Romans 10:11-21.
God bless,
RLW
If you click on this: Luke 1, it should take you straight to scripture & John 3:16, should be highlighted in red
Hopefully this information is helpful
Genesis 3, Also a Spiritual death, that happened immediately, the results of which were immediate fear, instead of trust to their creator. Feeling naked before GOD, & man etc. Matthew 8:22, Luke 9:60, Romans 5:12-21,
Eternal life, reference too Psalms 82,
Hopefully this is helpful
In Exodus 2:18, we read his name as Reuel & this means "friend of El (God)". This was very likely his given name.
In Exodus 3:1, Jethro (or, Yithro) is from the word, 'Yether', meaning 'his excellence'. So it seems that Jethro is the same person as Reuel, but Reuel was his given name & Jethro may have been a secondary name or honorific title that others might have called him by. As an example from the New Testament, we read of Simon who was also known as Peter ( Matthew 4:18); again known by two names (Simon, Luke 22:31; Peter, Matthew 8:14; Simon Peter, John 13:6).
Then in Numbers 10:29, some believe that Hobab is yet another name for Reuel/Jethro, adding to the confusion, and so several opinions have been given to interpret that 'anomaly'. However, I see it simply as: that Hobab was Reuel's (or Raguel's) son, as Raguel (Reuel) was Moses' father-in-law. This type of family tree descriptions can also be found in many other passages, including 1 Chronicles 5:14, Nehemiah 11:7.
I'm happy to offer my opinion. We can and should worship God every day, but many churches choose Sunday as a day to worship I believe because the first century church met on the first day of the week- Sunday. Read Acts 20:7. Since that is an example we are given, surely that's a good time to meet.
For your 2nd question, can you please provide scripture with the east/west that you believe is confusing? Christmas- I don't know. I kind of doubt Dec 25 was the correct day Jesus was born. But we also don't know the exact place in Bethlehem or elevation Jesus was born. There are many variables.
What some Roman guy or Catholic said or did carries no weight or credibility. The fact is Acts 20:7 said long before them that they met on the first day of the week so its not wrong to gather that day.
As for 666, people into numerology can make any book have the same 'coincidences' through enough research, but this is merely confirmation bias. It's similar to the birthday paradox how it seems illogical and almost like a conspiracy how with so few people you have 2 or more with the same birthday. It's a cute party trick just like the 666. It's equally likely to find 555 or 444 or any other sequence if one crunches enough numbers, but it doesn't mean anything. If some day I see people funneled into taking a mark with 666 on it then I will know with certainty that is something to avoid, but someone doing a little trickery to make a coincidence seem like its not is insignificant in my opinion. God bless.