Bible Curious Arthur Milliken

DAY 1 (Matthew 1-2): The Gospel of Matthew is the first book of the New Testament, and tells the story of Jesus Christ, whose ministry began around 30 AD. We're beginning "in the middle", so to speak, because from a Christian perspective the entire Bible points toward the life, death and resurrection of this man. Matthew's Gospel begins with the genealogy of Jesus, containing many historical names which would have been familiar to Jewish readers. Now to us it might sound a little bit boring, but there's actually an important mystery hidden in this list of forty-one names.

DAY 2 (Matt 3-4): After Jesus spends his childhood moving around the ancient world to avoid detection by King Herod of Judea, his stepfather Joseph finally settles down in Nazareth, and we hear nothing more about Jesus' life until he reappears as an adult at the river Jordan, where his cousin John the Baptist greets him, sparking a chain-reaction of miraculous events. After Jesus receives baptism from John the Baptist, he fasts forty days in the wilderness in preparation to begin his earthly ministry. It is here that Jesus encounters the devil, an enigmatic figure mentioned only sparsely in the Old Testament. Who is this Satan, and why did he confront Jesus in the wilderness? You won't believe the answer to this question.

DAY 3 (Matt 5-6): Jesus takes advantage of his enormous crowds to teach them, delivering the most famous sermon ever given. Jesus introduced us to his upside-down kingdom, where humility, love, and infinite generosity become the way to conquer your enemies. This is also the first time Jesus mentions Hell, or "Gehenna", as a place of divine punishment.

DAY 4 (Matt 7-9): Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount by teaching the difference between genuine and superficial followers of God, then leads his followers on a march around the Sea of Galilee, performing many miracles along the way.

DAY 5 (Matt 10-11): As Jesus' popularity grew and masses of desperate and needy people came to him for help, Jesus sees the need to start delegating authority to his most trusted disciples. He is then contacted by another prophet, John the Baptist, who wants to know definitively whether or not Jesus is the promised Messiah.

DAY 6 (Matt 12-13): Having established his divine authority through his teaching and performance of miraculous healings, Jesus attracts the attention of the Pharisees, a Jewish sect of teachers and professors of Torah. Jesus teaches in parables, which confuses the Pharisees while at the same time enlightening his disciples in spiritual truth.