Here is Honey Bear singing Old McDonald.  Honey Bear told us, “This song I sing when I am pooping.”

 Here are the girls being their cute selves

I found a place to help facilitate that http://www.sbcpray.net/biblepathway/welcome.asp and am pround to say I am in the middle of Numbers now.  I have been reading for 17 days and have completed 51 days worth of reading.

I will post things that I feel lead to post as I read, but my main focus is just to read.  Please pray for me to finish this year.

I have more and more issues taking someone else’s interpretation on Scripture as the only interpretation.  This is what the Roman Catholic Church did for centuries and I don’t think that was the intention of the Bible.  I think it is the Word of God for all.  I have searched for a place where it can be freely discussed (in a Christian manner) online and have not found it, so I decided to set out to build such a place.

I started looking for a web service that I could use to read and search the Bible.  The first place I found was the publishers of the English Standard Version (ESV) translation   I actually use the ESV on this blog to show verses for further study.  I was worried with their terms and conditions when it comes to the number of queries and use.

Then I found BibleWebService and it was just about perfect.  However, this is a service by an individual that could go down at any time.  But, this wonderful person made the source code open source.  I have since converted it to use MySQL instead of SQL Server and have started testing it.

My plan from here is to create a place that anyone can lookup and discuss the Bible.  They can talk about their interpretation and back it up with scripture.  Others can join in on the discussion and state their views.  My hope is that through free open discussion, light will be shown to all.

As I started reading, I found they are only talked about in Matthew 2.  The first thing I noticed is that it doesn’t say there were 3 of them.  I figure that number came about because it talks of 3 gifts.  Anyway, back to the east conundrum.

Matthew 2:1-2 says, 1Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, 
 2“Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

Ok, so the Bible explicitly says they came from the east.  It also says they saw His star in the east, but it doesn’t say they followed it….yet.  So we have some undetermined number of magi coming from the east because they saw a star in the east and knew it to be the star of Christ.

Matthew 2:3-9 says, 3When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 
 4Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 
 5They said to him, “^(E)In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet:
    6‘^(F)AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH,
         ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH;
         FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER
         WHO WILL ^(G)SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.’”

 7Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them the exact time ^(H)the star appeared. 
 8And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” 
 9After hearing the king, they went their way; and the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was.

They went to Jerusalem not following the star, but because the star was there in the east.  They met with Herod which leads me to believe we are talking about days, weeks or months of travels while the star was there, not hours like my childish mind had envisioned.  So, they find out from Herod who finds out from the priests and scribes that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem which was written in Micah 5:2
.

So, they begin to head west to Bethlehem and the star from the east goes west before them to the exact spot where Jesus is.  He is already born and no longer in the barn, it says He is in a house.

Matthew 2:11 11After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

This was all pretty eye opening, I guess you can’t believe everything you sing.

Why were God’s Laws written?  This could and has sparked a debate that could go on for eternity.  However, Jesus reminds us that is was not written so that we would go through the motions, it was written so that we might grant grace to others.  These laws even had caveats for Priests.  Not only can Jesus do his work on the Sabbath because he is doing good work, he is the LORD of the Sabbath and greater than even the Temple.  He ends this passage with a quote from Hosea, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Hosea 6:6)  Don’t do things because they hurt you, do things because they help others.

 9Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, 10and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

 11He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

 13Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. (Matthew 12:9-14)

Jesus has told them to use your common sense.  If someone needs help no matter the day, help them.  You would help your livestock, why not another person?

 27“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

 28“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

 29“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.

 30“For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:25-30)

As children we cannot wait to grow up.  I wanted nothing but to become and adult and be master of my own destiny.  What we didn’t realize at the time was how easy things were for us.  We had a few simple rules that our parents set out and that was about it.  Looking back I would love to be a child again with little to no responsibilities.  Jesus is telling us that not only can we have that, we should strive for it.  Our Father will take care of us, so quit trying to “grow up”.  Trust in Him and be a child.

1“Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the LORD of hosts.  (Malachi 3:1).

 Finally Jesus showed the hypocracy of the leaders saying John was mad and had a demon because he didn’t eat and drink (remember the bag of locusts he carried for food), and saying Jesus was gluttonous and a drukard because he ate and drank.

How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah?  John the Baptist had the same question, and it is answered in the book of Isaiah

4Say to those with anxious heart,
         ”Take courage, fear not
         Behold, your God will come with vengeance;
         The recompense of God will come,
         But He will save you.”
    5Then the eyes of the blind will be opened
         And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
    6Then the lame will leap like a deer,
         And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy
         For waters will break forth in the wilderness
         And streams in the Arabah. (Isaiah 35:4-6)

1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
         Because the LORD has anointed me
         To bring good news to the afflicted;
         He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
         To proclaim liberty to captives
         And freedom to prisoners;
    2To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD
         And the day of vengeance of our God;
         To comfort all who mourn, (Isaiah 61:1-2)