Matthew’s Gospel and the Fulfillment of God’s Promise - The Bible in a Year Podcast

What this episode is about

The discussion focuses on the transition from the prophetic period into the Gospel of Matthew, highlighting its significance as a continuation of God's promise and the unfolding story of salvation. Father Mike Schmidz and Jeff Cavins emphasize the importance of understanding this Gospel in the broader biblical context, particularly after an extensive exploration of the prophets.

Key takeaways

• Navigating scripture is like hiking; one pass reveals the path, but revisits uncover hidden vistas.
• Matthew's genealogy: a family tree that’s less 'who's who' and more 'who needs to know' context.
• The prophets: an intense boot camp preparing us for the Gospel Olympics of understanding.
• One read through the Bible? Think of it as a first date—you barely scratched the surface.
• Understanding Matthew requires a Rosetta Stone of the Old Testament; otherwise, it’s a numeral soup.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Father Mike Schmitz (Host) · 24 min speaking
• Jeff Cavins (Guest) · 16 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 5:00: Gospel of Matthew, Jeff Cavens, Ascension
2. 10:00 – 15:00: Elsie Lincoln Benedict
3. 15:00 – 20:00: Gospel of Matthew
4. 25:00 – 30:00: Pope John Paul II, Elsie Lincoln Benedict

Notable quotes from "Matthew’s Gospel and the Fulfillment of God’s Promise - The Bible in a Year Podcast"

• And so we have Jeff because we have Matthew, we also have Jeff. And so Jeff is going to give us that introduction into what we should pay attention to, what we should be attend.

  about Gospel of Matthew · at 0:32

• Have to divide it up into the Old Testament and the New Testament. And when we come to the New Testament, I always say it's the Gospel of Matthew. I love I would probably say the same thing.

  about Jeff Cavens · at 3:16

• Linked to the Old Testament. And I love this type of history. And Pope Benedict was really big on this in his multi-olume set on Jesus of Nazareth where he talks about this…

  about Elsie Lincoln Benedict · at 12:18

• One of the most powerful moments I've ever had in my entire life was a year before Pope John Paul II passed away and I was invited to meet with him in my family in his library, his private.

  about Pope John Paul II · at 28:01

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Jeff Cavens — Person · Main guest · 1 mention · first at 0:20
  He provides the primary teaching content: how Matthew’s Gospel fulfills Old Testament patterns (genealogy structure, Elijah/John, wilderness testing, Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 16).
• Elsie Lincoln Benedict — Person · Referenced expert · 2 mentions · first at 12:26
  Cited as an authority on reading Jesus in continuity with the Old Testament, specifically referencing his multi-volume work on Jesus of Nazareth.
• Pope John Paul II — Person · Referenced figure · 2 mentions · first at 28:06
  Used in a personal anecdote to underscore the continuity of the papacy from Peter to modern popes, reinforcing Matthew 16’s significance.

Books & papers

• Gospel of Matthew — Book · Primary recommendation · 7 mentions · first at 0:41
  Central text discussed in the episode, focusing on its significance and teachings within the New Testament.

Sponsors

• Ascension — Company · Sponsor · 1 mention · first at 0:12
  Mentioned as the sponsor of the podcast, providing context for the production and distribution of the content.
  Podcast where we encountered God's voice and live life through the lens of scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension using the Great Adventure Bible…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:04 Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmidz and you're listening to the Bible in a Year podcast where we encountered God's voice and live life through the lens of scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension using the Great Adventure Bible Timeline. We'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today. Today we are joined by Jeff Caven once again as we move from the period of exile into our next messianic checkpoint. We had John, then we had Mark, and now we have Matthew.

0:32 And so we have Jeff because we have Matthew, we also have Jeff. And uh so Jeff is going to give us that introduction into what we should pay attention to, what we should be attend to when it comes to the Gospel of Matthew. Jeff, it's awesome to have you again on the show.

0:46 Well, it's good to be with you again. And uh the story the story continues. Yes. And also, I just said on the show, is this a show? I don't know. On the podcast, on our show, we always have this. Yeah, the story continues. Um, and uh, gosh, we just I think we when I say the period of exile, I not only period of exile, but the period of I not the period of the prophets, but we got just got done with a long section of the prophets. I think it was was it a 100 days? I mean, it was at least I think 90 or something in there of of prophets, which probably for most people was their first um, exposure to the prophets. And what a what a gift to be able to walk all the way through and hopefully have some context. And now we have the context launching into the Gospel of Matthew as well.

1:27 Right. It was long enough for people to say, "How many prophets are there, right?" Exactly. And I think that uh you know, in all fairness, people can get a little bit confused during that time. And uh it is a it is a lot. And uh it might be good just to remind all of our friends that one time through the Bible is not enough. One time through is like an introduction and then hey, you got your rest of your life to work it out. And that's what you you've done. That's what I'm doing. And uh it's been years and decades for me and I I never get tired of it. But the more you do it, the the easier the story gets, the and uh I don't know if it gets easier to live, but it's easier to understand the more you do it.

2:07 That's a good way that that that's a good distinction I think to make. It's not necessarily any easier to live, but to get that that sense of okay, I have my bearings. I know for for a lot of people who have contacted me, they said over the prophets, um they had to have their Bible in front of them as they were listening. Um not maybe not everybody, but a lot of those are just like, "Okay, I need to follow along uh and be really attentive. I can't uh I mean, I think there's something good about this podcast, which is get in your car, drive, and let the God's word wash over you. Let him him pour his word into you." Um, but sometimes there's that sense of like, okay, I need to um I need to pause and I need to actually carve out some time where I can not only hear the word of God, but also uh see it because again, those prophets sometimes uh it's easy to get lost. And so, I'm glad we're here now.

2:54 Well, it's kind of a reprieve now because we are taking a look at one of the messianic checkpoints, which is the Gospel of Matthew. And uh it kind of, you know, when we go into this, people are like, "Ah, okay. All right. Now, yeah, I know where we're at. I know what's going on

3:08 here. So, we want to take a look at this at this gospel. And you know, I get that question all the time. What's your favorite book of the Bible? And I always have to divide it up into the Old Testament and the New Testament. And when we come to the New Testament, I always say it's the Gospel of Matthew. I love

3:23 I would probably say the same thing. Yeah. Yeah. I I love it. And you know, it's written to Jewish people. And so written to being written to Jewish people means that Matthew is going to use some words and some phrases and some ideas that that Jewish people will get but other people might not get it, you know, unless they have somebody to explain a little bit of this uh to them. But it is just filled with so many good things and we'll talk about a few of those today. So when it comes to the Gospel of Matthew, we've we've already covered the Gospel of John and Gospel of Mark, what are some of the ways, what are some things that we can be listening for that are differences when it came to John, then Mark, and now here's Matthew.

4:09 Sure. Well, I think that that more than the other three gospels, again, this is one of the synoptic gospels. That's Matthew, Mark, and Luke. And John is not a synoptic gospel. the synoptic gospels really mean that they seem to come from a a common source, the common stories and so forth. I I think that Matthew even more than the other gospels is dependent upon you knowing the Old Testament. So as as our friends read through with you through the old through the New Testament, I think on this particular gospel, they're going to get a lot of things out of it as far as wait a minute, I think we've we visited that in the Old Testament, you know, in some ways. And we can talk about a couple of those u here today. But starting off at the very beginning of the Gospel of Matthew, you have one of the most well- readad portions of scripture, which is called a genealogy.

5:03 And it's so funny because we've come to the New Testament and everyone's so excited and all a sudden it's oh Jacob begat and and they're into that and uh in the Hebrew that is actually a a um a tool. It's a lit literary tool called a toled dot which means really the generations of and and when Matthew is using this at the very beginning he's trying to show you something and he's trying to show you something that is dependent upon the Old Testament and he's trying to show you that there is something new that is about to begin that is a fulfillment of everything we've been through so far this year. And so when you read the the genealogy, the the the two things that are unusual is number one, there are four women mentioned. And those four women that are mentioned are all women who have uh sort of a question, you know, about their life. Uh you have Ray, Rahab, and Tamar and Basheba. And you

6:05 have you have women who kind of bring up the eyebrows a little bit as to hm why would he bring why would he bring up women in the genealogy? And the answer to that is that Matthew's saying, "I'm about to unload something on you here that is going to be well different." And I want to show you that your whole history has been riddled with different stories, you know, and of course he's going to say that a virgin shall conceive and give birth. And they're like, "Say what?" And that he wants them to remember your background was a little bit different.

6:41 The second thing is that the genealogies Matthew tells us are are really reduced to three sets of of of 14 generations. And the number seven for the Jewish community is a number of covenant. It is a number of fulfillment. It is very important. Shabbah in Hebrew. And so when when g when when Matthew gives this genealogy, he says from Abraham to David is 14 generations. David to the Babylonian deportation, which all of our friends know about now,

7:15 which everyone should know. Exactly. Yeah. Exactly. 14 generations. And from the Babylonian captivity to Joseph and Mary, 14 generations. Now, pause for a second and you realize that is that is six sets of seven. And then suddenly Jesus is brought onto the scene. And that is the beginning of the seventh seven. And that is the completion, the fulfillment of everything that we've been reading in the car, in the backyard, on the beach, in airplanes. We've come to the fulfillment now. And that is Jesus Christ. And and that's that's basically the introduction.

7:54 Yeah. And that's what that is so incredible to to realize that these names that we'll be hearing uh starting today uh or whenever people press play for that first day that Matthew chapter 1-4 maybe for the first time some of the people who listen are going to say oh I know those names

8:12 like I I not just I know the Babylonian exile and how significant that was but also oh some of these other names in here I know that story and it's kind of like when I when we I go with you to the Holy Land there's that there's the people who have gone through the great adventure bible timeline and you mention oh the story of Solomon and they're like oh yeah and they they dial right in on this or you mentioned the divided kingdom or how Solomon was a builder and all these kind of pieces and they're just lasered in on and they understand what you're talking about and some of those you know Catholics who who might not be as familiar and they might have not have gone through the Bible timeline that uh it's like okay this is good but who who is that this is I think going to be for so many people you know on day 250 58 uh to be able to say I've been no no I I have been exposed to God's word for 258 days. I know even if I can't

9:03 remember exactly who or what they did, I know that name and I I I know the context here. And that's it sounds like that's one of the things that Matthew is doing for us at the beginning of the his gospel is giving us this is not out of nowhere. This is not out of the blue, but this is the fulfillment as you mentioned of God's covenant that his promises to his people um are fulfilled in Christ. And this is this is uh this is our father being faithful.

9:27 Right. Exactly. And that sets the table for us as we as we start off by establishing that this Jesus is the son of David, related to David, related to Abraham and uh goes all the way back and uh that and that's that's very Jewish to to put a genealogy right at the beginning there. So I would encourage people in the future, don't just gloss over that. Think about it. Look at this that the the history and the story of uh of Jesus Christ. And I would remind you that on your Bible timeline chart, if you have one, there's a red line all the way through that chart. And that red line is taken from here. This is where we get a lot of that a lot of that information. That bloodline. Yeah.

10:11 That's in that's incredible. And it's one of the things I don't know if we've mentioned that uh I think St. Augustine had said it that the Old Testament is revealed in the new and the New Testament is hidden in the old and that sense of that's what we've been doing for all of this time has been uh having the hidden fulfillment in the Old Testament and now here when we hit Matthew's gospel like the other gospels as well we have that all this stuff that was hidden now revealed and um we can see those pieces and those connections like you're like you're saying

10:43 one of the the the points that I get exced excited about with Matthew's gospel is that and we'll share a little bit of that right now is that it gives our listeners, our friends, an opportunity to see how Jesus teaches and how the how it's so important to know the Old Testament when it comes to understanding the teachings of Jesus. And we get this right away after the genealogies in chapters three and four of Matthew. And it starts off where you have in chapter 3 in the days uh in those days came John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness of Judea repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand for this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said the voice of one crying in the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord make his path straight. And then it goes on for for uh four, five, and six, verses four, five, and six, and it tells us what he wore, what John wore, and what he ate.

11:40 And I and I I look at that like, okay, was that really necessary? I mean, really, I want to know what he thought and what he did. But

11:48 thanks for in the details. Yeah. Right. Matthew's doing is he is drawing your attention to uh John the Baptist and linking him to someone in the Old Testament. And this is one of the the the keys to reading the gospel is you have to read and listen for things that are being fulfilled. And in Jesus' life, what he did, where he went, what he said, how he taught, it is all linked to the Old Testament. And I love this type of history. And uh you know, Pope Benedict was really big on this in his uh multi-olume set on Jesus of Nazareth where he talks about this type of history where Jesus is fulfilling everything in the old. And so when you come and I'll use this as an example, Matthew 3 and4, Matthew 3 and4 should remind people of something in the Old Testament that Jesus is fulfilling. So in chapter 3, you have John the Baptist coming on the scene and he shows up at the Jordan River just north of the Dead

12:59 Sea and he's dressed like someone. Now, who is that someone? Elijah, right? It's Elijah. He's dressed like Elijah. So, we we have to as Bible students ask ourselves the question constantly. All right, ask yourself a question. He's looking like Elijah. Where was Elijah? Let's go back and look at Elijah. And all of a sudden, you realize the last place we see Elijah was way back in 2 Kings chapter 2. And it was right here. This is where the last place we saw Elijah was at the Jordan River. And John

13:33 the Jordan. Exactly. John comes running in there dressed like Elijah. I love that. And so then it leads to verse 13 where Jesus is going to come down there himself and submit himself to baptism. And John says, "Wait a minute. I I should be baptized by you." And Jesus said, "No, this is necessary. We have to fulfill all righteousness." which means in Hebrew literally that I have to complete the story. I have to immerse myself in everything in the Old Testament. So that's in chapter 3. And then in chapter 4, right after Jesus is baptized, he comes up out of the water. And then in chapter 4, he goes off into the wilderness for 40 days where he is tempted.

14:28 three major times. Now, the student of scripture needs to ask themselves the question, has this ever happened before in the Old Testament?

14:37 Yeah. Yeah. These these particular temptations, this particular in the wilderness for a a time of 40 that just like all of these things that Matthew is highlighting to point us to um Yeah. Remember, here's what happened in the past. Here is what Jesus is doing now.

14:55 Yeah. Yeah. And so, you know, we just ask people to pause for a moment right now. Does this ring a bell? It should ring a bell. It rings a bell because it did happen in the Old Testament. Israel went into bondage for 400 years. They came out of bondage, went through the water of the Red Sea, went out into the wilderness for 40 years, and tried the Lord three major times. And they failed. They failed. They failed. They failed. And what does Jesus do? He's fulfilling all righteousness. He comes up out of the waters of baptism, goes into the wilderness for 40 days. He's tried and he's the faithful son. He's showing us how to live. And I love this. And we see this kind of history over and over in the Gospel of Matthew. So, as people are are listening with you and reading with you, I would encourage them, don't listen lightly. Think think as they're hearing this because they're going to see it over and over.

15:54 You know, it's one of the things that we always encourage people whenever um we take a moment even, you know, at mass when the the word is proclaimed, we sometime I I sometimes invite people like listen to this or read this as if you've never heard it before, as if you've never read this before. Um because then we're going to be more attentive as as opposed to, oh yeah, yeah, Jesus got baptized. Mhm. Yep. Moving on. But to be able to stop and ask that question, okay, why Jesus is baptized? Why? or even these three temptations. Why these three temptations? Like why is why why them as opposed to any any other things that Christ could have been tempted uh to to do? And and that's so good as you're saying, I think now that we've had so much I mean it was great to have that first messianic checkpoint with John's gospel, but I think we were still so new into the the big picture story that we weren't necessarily prepared to make all

16:49 of these connections or as many as we we will be able to make now or even ask the questions of of you know as it's been you know threearters of a year basically where we've been on a daily basis exposing oursel to God's And to be able to ask, okay, why this? You know, because these are going to be stories that for the most part people will know, right? These is Matthew's gospels pretty widespread. I mean, I think most people who go to church would have a familiarity with them, maybe more than they would with, you know, the book of Esther or or the book of Judith. Uh, and so this is really really great opportunity to listen with new ears, to read with new eyes, and to uh like you said, ask the question with a new perspective.

17:30 Right. Right. Well, they you move on in the gospel and one of the great one of the greatest portions of scripture in the entire Bible that people absolutely love is the sermon on the mount and you and I along with many of our friends have been there. It's chapters 5 through7 and it is it is some people say the greatest concentration of Jesus teaching and uh and what he came to do in the entire Bible and it is it's amazing that sermon on the mount

18:01 it is and I love how at the end of the sermon on the mount uh Jesus like you said there's a concentration of his teaching and at the end he says okay there's a difference between hearers of this and doers of this and that famous example of building your house on sand. You heard it but didn't do anything with it versus building your house on rock. You heard these words and then acted on them. And that's just so powerful. I just love the fact that I never had noticed until I guess it must have been a decade ago, maybe less than a decade ago, where oh my gosh, I mean, I've always known that example or analogy Jesus makes about uh building on sand versus building on rock, but didn't realize, oh, this comes at the end of this, as you said, most concentrated portion of the Bible of Jesus's teachings. And just that sense of, wow, okay, I can know this. I can hear this.

18:52 I have to do it. I have to build my life on this. And you can think of the the sermon on the mount as being the Jesus' fulfillment of uh Moses going up on on Mount Si and receiving the law. This is the new law of the kingdom. And a lot of people, it's it's kind of funny because people will say, "Oh, thank God we're in the New Testament." Uh, you know, this is so much easier than the Old Testament. that you that was really really hard and they actually have it completely upside down. It this is harder because what what the sermon on the mount is going to reveal to us is not is that the law is not merely external but it is internal and that and that uh you couldn't commit adultery in the Old Testament. Now you don't even think about it, you know, and and and it's internalized and it's it's harder than you think to follow every aspect.

19:46 And you you can only do it by the power of the Holy Spirit and this intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. And this is going to call people to a whole new uh level of living, the the sermon on the mount. And in chapter six of the sermon on the mount, it's it's beautiful because you started off in Genesis talking about the problems with Adam and Eve and looking at the the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that it was it was beautiful and uh it tasted good and it made one wise and we always wonder well what's you know what is the solution to this? How do I battle the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life? And the answer is right here in chapter six where Jesus gives us three forms of piety that are that word piety kind of sounds funny, doesn't it? It's like people like so pious. So pious.

20:40 Very very churchy. But it's good. Yeah. But it's really weapons. It's weapons he gives you for the lust of the eyes. He gives you what? Almsgiving. If you're having a problem with lust of the eyes, divest yourself of those things that are attaching to you. almsgiving. Almsgiving the the uh lust of the flesh, whatever form that might come in, it's fasting. It's fasting. You're dealing with that lust of the flesh by uh fasting. And then the pride of life. How do we deal with the pride of life? Prayer. Humble ourselves. We need God's help. And that's a just a little picture right there just from the sermon on the mount of the type of thing that people are going to receive. Yeah. And that's that's incredible. I mean even just that way of again having both the macro story and applied in this micro way and recognizing that okay this isn't just oh concerning almsgiving oh concerning prayer oh oh concerning fasting but okay

21:42 this is going to be like even you said I I love how you went from here's some norms of piety which is legit word that's a word that's a good word we can still use but be able to say weapons that makes uh that gives me more of a clear sense that I need to engage with these three weapons, almsgiving, prayer, and fasting to battle against the parts of me that want to rebel, that, you know, want to get give in to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. And uh as opposed to, oh, these are pious acts that kind of help you like no, no, no. These are weapons that we pick up and use in uh pursuit of the Lord and in battle against our fallen human nature. And that's so good.

22:22 And it takes work. you know, you got to roll up your sleeves and you got to follow him, pick up your cross and follow him. But he hasn't he hasn't just left you alone. He has given you these these powerful weapons. And later at the end of the New Testament with First John, John, he kind of bookends the Bible by mentioning these three things again and says, "These aren't of God." You know, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. That in Hebrew, they'd say that ain't God. You know, that's not God. That isn't God. But but God has given us some some way of dealing with these. And you know, being a a book or a gospel that is written to the Jewish people, uh it would be incomplete if if uh if Matthew didn't write about the papacy, if he didn't write about that position in the Old Testament that worked with the king that ran the kingdom. And in Matthew 16, that's exactly what we have. We have the

23:22 introduction to the papacy and that goes all the way till today. And it is a gift from God to make sure that we're cared for, that we receive the Eucharist, and that the church holds together as a as a family, as a unit. Yeah. And that and that's we we had talked about that a little bit when we went through Isaiah, but here we get to see it in the context of, as you said, here is the king. Here's he estab here he is establishing a kingdom. All of the promises of the past are that uh here is the fulfillment. A kingdom that will not end. A kingdom that will not end by a king who will rule forever. And you're like, "Oh my gosh, here it is. Jesus reconstituting the kingdom under his lordship." And as you as you noted in Matthew 16, establishing that that role of the prime minister or the al-Habit of the of the kingdom and and it's so good.

24:14 I mean, here I am telling you about that or mentioning it to you when you're probably the one who taught it to me. And so,

24:19 no, no, no. It's good. Good stuff. That's good news. It's really good. And it uh you know, when when you and I go to Israel, we every time we go to uh we go to Cesaria, Philippi, way up in the north by Lebanon and Syria. And and when I used to give trips as a as a Protestant, they didn't go up there. And when we started going up there as Catholic, as a Catholic, the guides would say, "Why are you taking a whole day to go all the way up there? I mean, can't you just talk about it? And I said, no, you don't get it. This is important.

24:53 It's important for Catholics to know the the the the place that Jesus gave the first prime minister, the first papa, which was uh St. Peter. And and I love that. I'll just read this real quick because it's so good. Jesus said, "Who do they say the son of man is?" And they said, "Well, Jeremiah, Elijah, one of the John the Baptist, one of the prophets." No. No, no. He says, "But who do you say that I am?" And you know, he says, "Who do you say? Who do you say I am?" They give him these these guesses and uh who and they they get it wrong.

25:30 He says, "Well, who do you say I am?" That's what I was trying to say. And they and and Peter steps up to the plate and says, "You are Christ, the son of the living God." And then Jesus at that point point does something that you know as well as I do, father. blew away the rest of the disciples. He pulls out the keys, gives him to Peter, and says, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my father who is in heaven. And I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock. I'll build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail. What you bound bind in heaven will be bind on earth will be bound in heaven. What you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." And and so the the question is well what was Jesus doing there in Matthew 16? Well, he was establishing Peter as the prime minister as the first pope who is really tasked with leading the church when the king ascends. And uh

26:30 the the the key there and the pun is purposeful is the keys. Whoever has the keys is the prime minister. Period. That is that's in a Catholic Bible. That's in a Protestant Bible. That's in all of the Bibles. And the reason is is because it's so important to know that Jesus didn't just establish his kingdom and walk away and say, "Hey, hope you guys can make it work." He put leadership in place. And that has been such a a gift all throughout the years because even if we've had poor leadership throughout all these centuries, the faith hasn't changed. And that's the work of the Holy Spirit through through the the papacy.

27:14 So that is really really important. And that is not just a an invisible or spiritual kingdom although it is that but it also has structure to it. has like you as you mentioned um there's leadership there's there are roles that people people fulfill not just kind of um this vague sense of the church but oh here is you can point to you can see and say oh the kingdom is here uh that the kingdom has structure I mean if if God is going to fulfill these promises the promise wasn't just for again a a merely a spiritual kingdom but a a kingdom where you could point to and see it and it would give God glory and It would it would save people. It would serve people um and save people. Uh God would through that through that through his church, through his kingdom.

28:01 One of the most powerful moments I've ever had in my entire life was a year before Pope John Paul II passed away and I was invited to meet with him in my family in his library, his private library. And uh I wouldn't normally talk about that. In fact, Pope Benedict told me not to be a named dropper, but um but I I I remember going in there and we knelt down, the whole family knelt down in front of Pope John Paul II and I looked up and there were keys on the collar of his of his uh garments.

28:37 Yeah. And I got so choked up. I looked I thought, "Oh my, I have come to the seat of Peter."

28:44 Yeah. And it was an amazing moment like put a fork in me, you know, this was an amazing moment to have that's the closest I can come to Peter, you know, and the history of the church. And uh and so the pope is such a gift to us and I'm very very grateful for all of the popes who have served so well and in in loving us and loving Christ and making sure that we are fed and and taken care of. And you are an extension of that yourself, Father, and you've done a great job. Well, that's a that's that that that mystery of um what we're going to read about in Hebrews of, you know, God choosing men to to serve as priests and to have that Jesus the one high priest, but he shares that that work, shares that ministry, shares that grace and gosh, get to be able to be able to be brought into that and do what we can as human beings. That's that's amazing.

29:34 So, a as as um as I move and just kind of go into, you know, all the way to the end of Matthew's or through Matthew's gospel. Um what are some things that I know you already said, hey, pay attention to these things. Pay attention to the fact that that Matthew is a Jew writing to Jews. And pay attention to the reality that um we're going to need to be seeing how the New Testament reveals the Old. The Old is hidden in the New. Uh vice versa. The New Testament reveals the Old. the New Testament is revealed is hidden in the hidden hidden in the Old. Um, but uh are any any kind of like launching points to take away as maybe a lot of us uh start Matthew 1 through4 today? Mhm. Well, I I do think that uh again, we've we've talked about it several times, but uh reading the Bible and listening to the Bible, not just as a curiosity seeker, but as a disciple. And uh in the Gospels, we see the language used over

30:33 and over that they followed Jesus. And in after the Gospels, we see in the book of Acts that we only see one time where they use the word followed Jesus. But now it changes to walking with him and he is inside of you and he's empowering you. And so I would encourage people to to listen to the gospel with both of those in mind that I am I'm learning to follow him but I also am aware that now I'm walking with him because he has given me uh the responsibility to carry out his wishes, his will. And you will see that laid out in the gospel the that you know that that that great bracelet.

31:13 What would Jesus do? Well, you're going to be soaked in it now. And so what Jesus would do, that's what the type of things that we do. And we want to come to know to know his his voice. You know, I I would encourage people especially those who are married to uh to get a hold of chapter 19 that talks about marriage. It's a very powerful uh teaching on marriage. And then in chapter 24, it is it is the the end time scenario where for that chapter, Matthew's going to talk about the end of an age and the beginning of a new age, which is the end of the old covenant, the beginning of the new. And all of the gospel writers have one of these. Mark has chapter 13, Luke has chapter 21, Matthew's chapter 24, and John has an entire book called the book of Revelation. And they they all four talk about the end is coming, which is 2,000 years ago. But I think it has also something to do about the future as

32:17 well, and how we are to to live. And so that is that is really really important. And perhaps my uh in our kind of our closing thoughts, one of the the great parts of scripture is the the great commission at the very end. And this is one of the parts of uh Matthew's gospel that speaks to me so so clearly where Jesus came to them and he said, "Look, after all of this, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the close of the age. So, you ask me, you know, the question of a launching point. Well, I think that one of the launching points is as you listen to chapters 1-4 and the rest of the gospel, listen carefully because at the end, he's going to ask you to teach other people to observe all

33:18 of this. And so, you don't want to get to the end and say, "Oh, I wasn't really paying attention there. Maybe I ought to go back." So, um, as as you're listening, listen carefully. Yeah. Rewind.

33:32 Yeah. No, and I'm so glad you made that. Well, those points. Uh, one of the things Matthew was the first I think I would probably say that Matthew was the first part of the Bible I ever read on my own when I picked up to read the Bible. Um, because I had one of those little Gideon uh, New Testament and Psalms and Proverbs. And so, Matthew being the first book, that's the first thing I read. And one of the things that I was struck by then and was struck by so many times and I got a full Bible and we go back to Matthew is the conditions for disciplehip. The call to follow him.

34:03 The call to you know the the harvest is abundant but the laborers are few. Like all these these calling to belong to him to follow him to deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow in his footsteps. But then also as you're saying that sense of okay there is a past that's real but there's also this present reality and that is where we're following Christ of course we're called to follow him we're also walking with him and that is I think as we as we listen to Matthew's gospel and hear Jesus's call to follow him to also recognize that for those of us who have become disciples of Jesus that that both of these things are happening. we were following him and we're walking with him and uh yeah I'm so glad you pointed that out because this is actively going on so that then we can be commissioned by him to as you said to teach. It's uh you know I talk to our students it is so much so different to show up to class

34:57 when you're just there to learn. you know, you throw on a hat, throw on a a hoodie and sit down, make it in time for class versus to teach the class and you know, oh man, I responsible. I have to say something. Not only I have to say something, I have to lead this. I have to u have something to offer. That's a massively different experience. And so it's what a again great piece of wisdom to realize at the end of this gospel Jesus is going to say you go now and teach um okay so let me do this with preparing myself to be able to not just listen but to share

35:30 and the the last launching point I would say is that everything you hear in this gospel and every way of living every way of learning every way of speaking thinking um is what the world is looking for.

35:49 What you are going to listen to is what the world is searching for. And as the great rabbi in Jesus day hell once said, if not you, who? If not now, when? And this is our time. Uh this is we're on the stage now. And the and the the baton we just got we got through with watching Olympic games. The baton is in your hands now.

36:15 Yeah. And it's your leg. It's your leg. It's your time to run. Yeah. That's awesome. Thank you so much, Jeeoff. I I I'm so grateful for not only uh for these opportunities to check in and to have you give us the insight of just here's we move forward like this, but also just for all that you continue have done and continue to do to yeah run your leg of the race. And um I mean as I said even the uh uh number of the the elements that I will teach or have taught over the course of my leg has been have come from you and I'm just so so grateful uh that you have been running so well and so faithfully and um yeah thank you and so hopefully all the people who are with us um can do their part too and that's one of the things that I would say that that's why at the end of all these episodes every every podcast is like I'm praying because we have to pray for each other because um the task is huge. That great commission

37:10 it's it's not uh it's not the the small commission. It is the great commission. It is a big task that is bigger than all of us. And so we just we need God's grace or else uh it is impossible. It's an impossible.

37:23 You're doing a great job, Father. And I hear all the time from people saying, you know, that it's changing their life. The word of God is changing their life. They love how how you're teaching them. And and I'll tell you this as a concluding remark. the other day, uh, I had to I had to call the police

37:39 really because somebody had broken into our garage and and I had to call the police just to get a report. And I was talking to the officer and uh he we got around to what do I do? And well, I'm a Bible teacher and I do podcast. And I said, one of our podcasts did very well. I said, um, Bible in a year. And he goes, Father Mike Schmidt. I said, yeah. He says, I listen to it. He's pointing to the car. He said, I listen to I said, fantastic. That's great. you you you never know who's you know you're talking to someone

38:08 and that person may have just 5 minutes ago listened to the scripture right when we were when we were teaching. It's just it's amazing.

38:16 That is really cool. I'm glad glad you shared that. I'm sorry about your garage and hopefully everything's intact and you were safe.

38:22 Um I always you know I well someone broke into the house the other day and they stole my limbo stick. I mean how low can you go?

38:32 Okay. Sorry. I don't want to I don't want to make the joke cuz you actually did get broken into. So, I'm sorry, but I I couldn't resist. I am so grateful. Uh yeah. So, team uh family, this community that is going through the Bible in a year, we are grateful for Jeff and grateful for each other. And so, what do we do? Just please uh as the last word, we'll continue to pray for Jeff, continue to pray for each other. Uh please pray for me. I am praying for all of you. My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Matthew’s Gospel and the Fulfillment of God’s Promise - The Bible in a Year Podcast"?

Father Mike Schmitz (Host), Jeff Cavins (Guest).

What is "Matthew’s Gospel and the Fulfillment of God’s Promise - The Bible in a Year Podcast" about?

The discussion focuses on the transition from the prophetic period into the Gospel of Matthew, highlighting its significance as a continuation of God's promise and the unfolding story of salvation. Father Mike Schmidz and Jeff Cavins emphasize the importance of understanding this Gospel in the broader biblical context, particularly after an extensive exploration of the prophets.

What is mentioned in this The Bible in a Year episode?

5 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Gospel of Matthew, Jeff Cavens, Elsie Lincoln Benedict, Pope John Paul II. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Matthew’s Gospel and the Fulfillment of God’s Promise - The Bible in a Year Podcast"?

The episode runs 39 min; the transcript is about 7,451 words in 63 timestamped sections.

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