Chapter 9.20
Pluck your eye out
Cut your hand off – Drink my Blood – Eat my Flesh
- Be Perfect
Take up your Cross – Sell everything – Ask
anything; you’ve got it
Don’t worry about Food, Drink, Clothes or Money –
Test God
Mustard Seed Faith - Gift of Faith – The Camel
Gate - CRAZY OR WHAT
First
Word
According to Scripture,
when you become a Christian you receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit who
will lead you into all truths; and literally if you ask anything in the name of
Jesus Christ, you will have it. If
that’s the case, it would seem that you certainly would know as much about Spiritual
things as your Pastor or anybody else for that matter.
This study is to explore the LITERAL words of Christ.
As Christians we believe in the inerrancy of the Bible; in other words
we believe that there are NO ERRORS in the Bible;
all the words are from God, therefore they ALL carry the same weight; however, some of the
things Christ said seem pretty FAR OUT.
a)
Ask anything in
my name and you will have it. Well,
how’s that working for you?
b)
Sell everything
you have and give it to the poor; then you can go to Heaven.
c)
Don’t worry
about your life, what you will eat; or about your body or what you will
wear.
d)
Get yourself a
cross
and take it wherever you go. WHAT !
e)
BE PERFECT just as God is perfect - That’s what
the scripture says. - How can that be?
f)
If you have
faith as small as a mustard seed you can tell a mountain to go jump into
the lake and it will; nothing will be impossible to you. WHAT !
g)
Pluck out your
Eye
and Cut off your Hand. Is this extreme or what.
h)
Drink my Blood and Eat my Body. HANG ON... We will get
to all of this shortly.
The Deep Stuff
This study begins in Matthew, the First Book
of the four Gospels; and starts with the First words out of the mouth of Jesus
when He said that we should not live by just some of the words of God, but by ALL of them. Right off the “BAT”, Jesus hits a HOMERUN right out of the ballpark. The path of a “CURVE BALL” travels different than expected and so do the
words of Christ.
The bottom line is, we should STUDY and LIVE by ALL the
words of God,[1]
Precept upon
precept and Line upon line.[2] To do this we need the help of the HOLY SPIRIT to be able to
discern what’s going on;[3] and Praise God, the Spirit already lives
within us and His job is to TEACH, LEAD and to REVEAL the
DEEP THINGS of God to us.[4] If we are being taught and led by the
Spirit, then that means we do not have it all down yet.
For me, I have a library of some 100 books and commentaries,
which here and there, most disagree
on something or the other; but armed with their scriptures, the Holy Spirit
speaks to my Spirit and that’s what I embrace. That means that my BS, my
Belief System changes as the Holy Spirit brings me along;
verse upon verse
and precept upon precept.
Today there are no new Revelations, there is only new enlightenment. That is why we have new translations of the
Bible, we now know more than we did when the King James Bible was translated,
and that’s just another Word Study in its self.
Remember the Original Manuscripts are errorless and we translate them differently as additional
manuscripts are found and new understanding of their culture is revealed.
Tradition is what we grew up with; our TRADITIONS and what we have always been told becomes our “Belief
System” and it’s hard to let go of what we
have always thought and embraced. In
fact our BS seasons everything we read
and think. Scripture says that all the gifts of
the Spirit are within the body of Christ; that’s why I need to read
the commentaries of others. I can stand
on their shoulders and see further that I otherwise ever could have.
The Paraklete
First
of all
the coming of The Holy Spirit was a promise[5] by
Jesus Christ to His followers, He said He would not leave them and us as
orphans.[6] They were told to wait for the promise of the
Holy Spirit; they waited and He came.[7]
The Greek word occurring five times in the
NT is parakletos meaning “Helper”
“One who
comes along side”; The Divine Paraklete. The Good News is that we are no longer
waiting for the Holy
Spirit; He is
waiting for us.
We have the SEAL of God’s
ownership, powered by the PROMISE of the Holy
Spirit who made a DEPOSIT that guaranteed
our inheritance with the Son. [8] THE SEAL - THE PROMISE - THE DEPOSIT
Name it and Claim it or Blab it and Grab it
This brings us up to the Prosperity
Message:
Jesus said if we ask for anything in His name that He hears us and we
will have what we have asked for. Ask for it; you’ve got it
Well, that’s sort of what He said… I left
out a small part; Ask “according to His
Will” and we will have it, so the imperative is to know the “Will of God”, or we ask in vain. Scripture bears out that the Holy Spirit not
only helps us to understand truth, but “Knows truth” Himself, He has knowledge
and will guide us and instruct us in all things as well as make intercession for things that are “THE WILL OF GOD”. This is pretty clear to my BS, I
need to know the will of God in order to know how to pray and make decisions in
my life; the Bible teaches the WILL of God.
I don’t mean to drag this subject out, but…. the asking, seeking and knocking is
actually about prayer petitioning God on how we should react to OTHERS in our life. The verse just before this quoted “popular
verse” of ask, seek, knock is about our testimony to those that we meet. Some we meet will be dogs or pigs and won’t know what to do
with the spiritual PEARLS of wisdom that
we share and they may even attack us; that’s why we need to; ask, seek and knock so that the
deficiencies in our relationship with others may be met.
The very next verse after the “popular verse” is the GOLDEN RULE; it’s about treating others like we want to be
treated. This “popular scripture” is
sandwiched between two scriptures about OTHERS; it’s not about
getting STUFF, it’s about
seeking God’s face so you will know how to treat others who have probably heard the
Gospel, but have rejected it.
Ask, Seek and
knock can
be translated; Pray,
Pray and Pray. ASK as a
traveler seeking direction; SEEK for the spiritual things of value; KNOCK on
the door of Mercy and Grace.
1 John 5:14-15 - Ask according to the Will
of God
14 This is the confidence we have
in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, he hears
us.
15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we
ask—
we know that we have what we asked of Him.
(NIV2011)
Matthew 7:6 –
Careful of the pigs and dogs; they can attack
6 Do not
give DOGS
what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to PIGS.
If you do, they may trample them under their feet,
and
turn and tear
you to pieces.
(NIV2011)
Matthew 7:7-11 - Prayer - Ask – Seek -
Knock
7 ASK and it will be given to you; SEEK and
you will find; KNOCK
and the door will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives;
the one who seeks
finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
(NIV2011)
Matthew 7: 12 - Do to others as you would have them do to you
12 in everything, do to OTHERS what you would have them do to you, for this sums
up the Law and the Prophets.
(NIV2011)
James 4:2 - You do not have because you do not ask God
2 You do not have because you do not ask God.
(NIV2011)
James 4:3 – You ask with the wrong motives
3 When you ask, you do not receive,
because you ask with wrong motives, that you
may spend what you get on your pleasures.
(NIV2011)
Get Stuff
I
really like the scripture that says if you give, MEN will give
back to you pressed down, shaken together and running over and poured into your
lap. God often uses MEN to not only to
be His instrument of vengeance,
but also to reward Justice.
The theme of this section is actually
addressing MERCY
and FORGIVENESS.
Jesus is painting a picture of the
oriental grain merchant with his “Measuring Basket” of Corn that’s pressed down and
shaken to fill every crack and then adding more to overflow the edges.
The part of this scripture that’s often
overlooked is that “the measure” that you use to give or sow will be
the same measure you receive back;[9]
did you use a teaspoon or a shovel?
This scripture is actually a Universal
Principal that can be applied to
anything you give out; not just money.
If you give your co-workers “Hell” or spew hate for a race of people, or put down your spouse; get ready; it’s coming back. You REAP what you SPEAK.[10]
If you lie, cheat and steal, mistreat, rumor monger
and sow discord; that’s what you are going to reap.
In your youth if you sow your seeds to the
“wind”,
you are going to reap the “whirlwind”.[11]
Charles Stanley says that you will reap what you sow; more
than you sow and for longer than you sow.[12]
It might not happen right away; but good or bad, it’s coming back.[13]
Some folks might just want to pray for a
“CROP FAILURE”.[14]
Do not be
deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will
also reap.[15]
If we sow to the flesh, it will reap corruption; if we sow to the Spirit it will reap everlasting
life. The measure we use to extend our love to others will be
the same measure that will be extended back to us; PLUS
SOME.
Good
or Bad; if we use a shovel; God will use a wheel barrow.
Test God
Jesus said, DON’T Test God;[16] further
scripture calls those that Test God; Hypocrites. [17] Then in another verse it says that we SHOULD Test God… Which is it; both statements cannot be TRUE,
or can they? When we put God to the Test, we
are actually saying that we do not trust Him to do what He has promised. For a Christian who lives by FAITH, Testing God is a
sure sign of DOUBT
Gideon doubted God’s promise to save Israel and
purposed a TEST
to verify what God had told him; he did this with a fleece, not once; but
twice. If you only read this verse, your
Belief System would be that you were supposed to test God in everything that He says in order
to be sure and to make certain He really said it; maybe even test
Him twice.
Gideon had doubt in HIMSELF, that he could lead only 300 men to defeat the enemy of thousands
upon thousands. Should YOU choose to throw
out a fleece concerning God’s Word; you might just be the one that gets
fleeced. (Fleece Not) SELAH ponder that.
Judges 6:37 – Make the fleece WET and the ground dry
37 look, I will place a wool fleece
on the threshing floor.
If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry,
then I will know that you will save Israel
by my hand, as you said.”
(NIV2011)
Judges 6:39 – Make the fleece DRY and the ground wet
39 Then Gideon said, “Do not be
angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with
the fleece, but this time
make the fleece dry and let the ground be covered with dew.”
NIV
The Gideon’s
Organization today, does not teach Testing God, but instead they teach
the results of Gideon’s petition; just as Gideon went out from his camp and
broke his jar to reveal the light, so do the Gideon’s today with the Bibles
to light up the world around them with the light of God’s Word. Did you know that 100% of
the money given to the Gideon’s goes to purchase bibles and their overhead is
paid entirely by dues from the members?
Gideon was far from perfect, but was willing and made himself available.
We too are far from perfect, we just need to be willing and available.
In a teaching moment, particularly in our
Giving, God has said to TEST HIM by giving
away some of our goods to see what will happen. This
is the only time God has said to Test Him or “Prove Him”.[18] The purpose in mind for “proving God”
was the “building
up of OUR faith”; not for the TRADING
OUT of
something so we can GET something.
The Bottom Line; whenever good
comes to us, we are to turn it into an overt testimony of PRAISE to God and then unbelievers will take
note and be drawn to Him.
Tithe NOT
Well, I want to talk about The
Tithe since it’s tied in with Testing God.
I don’t know if you can handle this or not, but the truth is; we DO NOT have to
TITHE today. Jesus Christ FULFILLED the Old Covenant and now today we
live under the New
Covenant. The 613 Old laws
have been reduced to just two laws of Love… For the Jews who have not accepted Jesus as the Son of
God; the Messiah, they are still under the Old Covenant Laws.
When I discovered I did not have to tithe
anymore, I continued to do so because my giving changed from Compulsion
to Compassion. Nothing has changed for me, except I’m FREE;
I give because it’s in my heart to give.
It actually proves to me that my money is not my master. Malachi (who was under the Law) wrote about
giving what you had into the store house of
God and how the floodgates of heaven would be opened to you in blessings.[19] I found out there were MANY STORE HOUSES to give into;[20]
your local Church, Strangers, Orphans, Widows,[21]
and especially your FAMILY.
Tithing is a concept that teaches and
trains us to
be compassionate and think of
others.[22] Jesus teaches us to Raise the Bar of excellence; whatever is required; do more than is expected.[23]
The concept of
compassion is to loose the chains of injustice and untie and break
the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free; to share your food
with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter and when you see the
naked, clothe
them, and not turn away from your own flesh and blood; take care of your family.[24] It’s in the Book.
Sell Everything
Sell everything and give it to
the poor, then you will inherit the Kingdom of God; that’s what the scriptures
say. If you read only this scripture, you would
come away believing that only a poor person could be saved.
There was a co-worker of mine that
appeared on “Talk Radio”, taking
about how he sold everything that he owned and gave it to his church. He then relocated and expected things to
unfold good for him in the same manner in which he gave; but it didn’t, and he
was mad at God. Where was God in all of
this? He had spontaneously given and
expected spontaneous help.
The passage to sell everything and give it
to the poor was addressed to a very young and rich ruler who was a follower of
the Laws of Moses. The rich man’s life
reflected his desire to have a right relationship with men, but his relationship
with God was limited. He saw his riches
as WHO he was and WHAT his riches had
achieved; his trust and SECURITY was in his
money.
Jesus perceived that the young rich ruler thought that works of charity and human achievement would gain
eternal life. It’s not so much our good
WORKS as it is our INTENTIONS that Christ looks at. To be wealthy was considered a sure sign of
Devine Favor and evidence of having been blessed by God. This begs the question; if a
rich man blessed of God can hardly be saved, then who can?
J. Vernon McGee says; “Not many rich, not
many noble, not many of the great ones on
earth are Christians”.
You are truly saved when you realize you
can’t offer God anything for your salvation and come to Him as a beggar would
with empty hands. The love of money is
the root of all kinds of Evil; the rich young ruler loved his money more than
he loved God and he went away very sad.
Every commentary concluded by
saying; Jesus loved this man.
The rich young ruler’s stumbling block to
salvation was his money. For me and you
it would probably be something completely different. This story is not about money or riches; it’s
about whatever it is that’s keeping us from following Jesus Christ.
The Ten Commandments can be divided
into two parts. The first five are man’s
relationship with God and the last five is man’s relationship with other
men. Jesus only quoted the last section
to get the young man to realize that his relationship was with man, and not
with God. The rich young ruler had missed
the whole first section. Thou shall have no
other Gods before me; his god was
WEALTH;[25] it
certainly could have just as easy been LAND or SEX or PLEASURES or FOOD, and the list goes on.
Mark 10:17-27 – Sell what you have and
give it to the poor
17 what shall I do
to inherit eternal life?"
19 You know the commandments, and he said
to Him, "Teacher, I have kept all these things from my youth up." One thing you lack:
21 go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have
treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
22 But at these
words he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who
owned much property.
23And Jesus,
looking around, said to His disciples,
"HOW HARD IT WILL BE FOR THOSE
WHO ARE WEALTHY
TO ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD!"
25 It is easier for a camel to
go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
26 Then who can be saved?"
27 Jesus said, "With people it is impossible, but not with God;
for all things are possible with
God."
(NASB)
Side Bar
The
Camel Gate: Jesus said that it
would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich
man to enter the kingdom of heaven.[26]
The camel was the largest animal in
Palestine and the eye of a needle contained the smallest portal. There is a
legend that says that there was a small gate in the wall of the city of
Jerusalem that after the main gates were closed; a wayfarer could still get in
by unloading his camel and then it could pass through on its knees. The Gate was called “the eye of the needle”.
This is myth; no such gate has ever been found nor documented;
but the concept is an excellent analogy of man’s salvation. We
must strip off all the things of the world and on our knees enter through the
narrow gate.[27] A rich man
is compared to a camel, a beast of burden; as the camel has the burden of his
load so does the rich man have the burden of his riches.
Jesus
was speaking LITERALLY and the Disciples figured it out; no one can save
themselves.
Forget about Food and Clothes
Don’t make any plans for the future; don’t worry
about life; what you eat or drink or about your body or your clothes.[28] If you read only this scripture you would come
away with the notion that everything is going to work out all right for
you. You don’t have to make any plans in
life, just let it unfold before you; whatever will be, will be.
The subject of the scriptures just before this one was about a RICH FOOL who was living his COVETOUS life as if this life was all there was. Eat, Drink and be Merry; for tomorrow he might
die. The entire
passage teaches the FOUR
PROHIBITION; Do not covet
– Do not worry – Do not set your heart
on worldly things - Do not be afraid.
Jesus is NOT telling his
Disciples to be negligent or NOT make plans, but
that their personal needs should not be of their greatest concern; that God
knows their needs.[29] This was about “traveling lite” as they moved
from city to city preaching the Gospel; that their “needs” would be met. The issue being
addressed was not about making plans, but about WORRY.
The root cause of Worry is lack of FAITH; Doubt.
Scripture teaches that we should
be prudent and make plans, to be as shrewd as snakes and
as harmless as doves.[30] To work so we can pay
for what we eat[31] lest we become a BURDEN on others;[32]
this certainly applies to us today as followers of Christ.
As a young man, I knew the Methodist Pastor who
owned the local plumbing supply store and I was asking him about how his
business was going. He shrugged his
shoulders and said he rarely went in there; the
business only existed to pay his Salary so he could preach; the
small church could not afford THE BURDEN of a pastor’s salary.
Be Perfect
The
Sermon on the Mount is a description of the relationship of man to
the Kingdom of God and you hear it referred to as The
Beatitudes. The Teachings of Jesus were the same as
the Laws of Moses except the standards were higher. Jesus RAISED
THE BAR on
what is required of a man to inherit the kingdom of God. The underlying message is whatever you are
doing; it’s not enough. This begs the question; HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
As part of this
sermon He said that IF they expected to see the kingdom of God they
had to be more righteous than their religious leaders; the Scribes
and Pharisees.[33]
PERFECTION: To make it even more discouraging,
Jesus said to BE PERFECT just as God is perfect.[34]
How can that be?
The Scribes and Pharisees were the most
righteous men that followed the Law; how could anyone be more righteous or
perfect than them…WE CAN’T – We are all DIRTY, ROTTEN, LOW DOWN, SCUMBAG, SINNERS and we need
help, we need mercy, we need a Messiah.[35]
The whole point was NOT to show the Disciples and us that we could have
unqualified perfection; but to teach us they we are SPIRITUALLY
BANKRUPT and
that we should live our life in holy, mature, full-grown, blameless, PERFECT OBEDIENCE pursuing Christ.
The excellence of following the Divine Model of Jesus Christ is to be the
characteristics that distinguish His Disciples from the world.
Old Covenant; Jesus said that not even a comma or a
period of the Old laws would pass away until they are fulfilled,[36] BUT THEN, He says pretty plainly that
he did not come to do away with the laws, but to FULFILL them. The Old Covenant prophesized about a Messiah;
Jesus Christ fulfilled those prophecies.
New Covenant: So the Old Covenant Laws were NOT done away with, but FULFILLED by Jesus
Christ, so now we have a NEW covenant, a BETTER covenant AND we have the awaited
Messiah.[37]
Without this understanding that we are
operating under a NEW set of
guidelines; a NEW covenant, our GPS compass is looking backward at:
where we’ve been and not where
we are now, let alone where we are going.
I would be amiss if I didn’t also point
out that the previous scripture verses talk about LOVE. God’s love is PERFECT or complete for all ethnic groups; so a
believer must strive and press forward in grace, holiness and maturity
in this same regard. PERFECT LOVE
The Three Pillars of JEWISH Piety is Almsgiving, Prayer and fasting; the question is, how and why they practice them; without LOVE
they are just a clanging cymbal.[38]
Although un-realized, it is the Father
God that brings us along in our growth towards His perfection.[39]
We must dare to believe that God
will perfect what concerns us; the Believer is predestined to be
conformed to the image of God’s Son Jesus Christ.[40]
Condemned: Good News; there is NOW
no condemnation for those who are in Christ;[41]
we were made PERFECT by the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ on
the Cross.[42]
Real Tiny Faith
Jesus told His disciples
that if they had FAITH only as small as a MUSTARD SEED they would be able to tell a mountain to go jump into the lake, and it would; nothing would be
impossible for them. We pray about the
weather, then in DOUBT we go look outside to
see if it worked; we are of LITTLE FAITH.
The Disciples of Jesus, of all people, should have
had the faith of at least a mustard seed, but according to scripture; THEY DIDN’T and I don’t think we do either. In my Belief
System, I have observed that multiple
scriptures have indicated that the twelve disciples had “little faith”[43]
which was the subject Jesus was teaching them about, therefore obviously their
faith was smaller than that of
a mustard seed.
The Mountain Moving Faith was a proverbial expression, a hyperbole and nothing more;[44]
it meant that nothing
would be impossible to them
because of the virtue of the Divine Power engaged by a Divine
Promise.
Faith to
remove a mountain can be exercised only when God reveals that to be HIS
WILL
I
look at my broken and uneven driveway and see the power that is unlashed in
just ONE root of a tree next to it. A PILE of bruised and damaged seeds produces little or nothing; but just ONE quality seed’s roots will move a mountain. The Disciples did not even understand the parables that Jesus
taught; He had to take them aside in private to explain the meaning.
NOTE: When the Holy Spirit
was poured out and baptized the Believers on the Day
of Pentecost, they were given “Gifts
of the Spirit” which includes a special gift called “FAITH”; indicating most of us must be of “little
faith” and need some extra.
Billy Graham says there is a
difference between the Gift of Faith and the Grace of Faith.
The Grace of
Faith means that we have been given
the ability to believe God will do what He has promised; we are saved through
this Faith and we walk by this same Faith.[45]
The Gift of Faith is a very special gift
given by the Holy Spirit at His good pleasure to whom He chooses to accomplish the Will of God. Faith is the substance of things hoped for
and the evidence of things not seen.[46] We are encouraged to earnestly seek the best
gifts; “The Top Three” are Wisdom,
Knowledge and Faith.
The Prayer of Agreement of many combines their FAITH and multiplies it.[47] Peter was in jail and his friends had
gathered and committed to pray all night for him and an Angel was dispatched to
set him free and Peter walked to Mary’s house and found them still praying. Most folks see this as the power of prayer and
I agree, but in my BS, I also see
it as the principal of multiplied Faith.
The Enemy is operating FULL FORCE to stop the PROMISES OF GOD from reaching us, we fight against Principalities, Powers, and Rulers of the Darkness,[48] and therefore we need the faith of others hooked to our faith to fight
the good fight. Scripture supports that
five believers will put to flight one hundred of the enemies of God.[49] As our Faith seed is planted in the soil of our Spirit and watered with
His Word, the seed will push the roots downward deeper and the green shoot
upward without limit of effect enabling us to do good works.[50]
No
request is impossible that is in accordance with the WILL OF GOD.
NOTE; The Disciples had healed many
before, but having the FAITH to heal does
not make us autonomous or automatic dispensers of God’s healing grace; our continued
effectiveness depends and demands an ongoing dependence on God. We need to be continually RE-FILLED with the Holy Spirit.
WE LEAK, therefore we should be in prayer often getting refilled;
we are admonished to pray without ceasing.[51]
Get Gifts
Definition; a Gift is the
capacity for service. It is given to
build up the church; to give spiritual help to Believers.[52]
It is the Holy Spirit doing a particular
service using the Believer to do it.[53]
Every
Believer has been given a gift; EVERY BELIEVER.
A word about Gifts: In order to have unity in the church, there is
a diversity of gifts with different administrations and diversities of
operation, but it’s the same God that is working in all of them.[54]
They are TEMPORARY to be used as they are needed in His plan. You may be able to interpret your own dreams
for a period of time and then it just stops. For a while People may be systematically
placed in your life for help and then it just stops.
For a period of a year, I watched for people
on the side of the expressway and picked them up and shared the gospel with
them; then it just stopped. For a year I was allowed time off to visit
hospitals to pray for the sick and then it just stopped. For another year I had
signed checks in my shirt pocket waiting for who would be placed in front of me
that had a financial need; then it just stopped. I don’t know how it all works; I just know I
need to be obedient, whether it’s convenient or not.[55]
Sometimes our gifts start pointing toward
US instead of toward HIM. My gift today
is to study controversial subjects; dig up and write down nuggets of truth and
share them. Even a pig can root up an
acorn from time to time; and it’s still an acorn no matter how it got dug up.
Sidebar: If you will
notice the wording in scripture; it says a “WORD” of knowledge and a “WORD” of Wisdom…Not a page, nor a paragraph,
or even a sentence; it was only a “Word”. We
are NOT given ALL knowledge, nor
ALL wisdom,
but just some; the gifts are partial in nature.[56]
Have the gifts ceased? Many denominations say yes, they ceased with the time of the Apostles,
but according to God; NO, though few seek
them, they will be in effect until Jesus the Christ returns,
The
Gifts and Calling of God are irrevocable.[57] It’s in the Book
1
Corinthians 12:7-11 – The NINE
gifts of the Spirit
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is
given to each one for the profit of all:
8 for to one is given the WORD of wisdom through the
Spirit, to another the WORD of knowledge through the same Spirit,
9 to another faith
by the same Spirit, to another
gifts of healings
by the same Spirit,
10 to another the working of miracles,
to another prophecy,
to another discerning
of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues,
to another the interpretation
of tongues.
11 But one and the same Spirit works
all these things,
distributing to each one
individually as He wills.
(NKJV)
Gouge your Eye out
Gouge your Eye out and Cut your Hand off are some of the things that Jesus said that are
hard to swallow. This seems like CRAZY TALK; did He literally mean it? My BS thinks YES, He is talking to the Disciples about the Seriousness of
Sin and the Seriousness of the separation from God for
eternity and damnation to Hell fire. He is teaching that a man is better off living
a DEFORMED LIFE without sin than
a sinful WHOLE PERSON walking around
that is damned to HELL.[58] That’s where we get the term; ‘DEAD MAN WALKING”.
Paul’s
Belief System; it’s not me
that sins; it’s my eye that made me do it. If there is no other way to restrain your eye,
then it would be better to pluck it out than to indulge in sin to the ruin of your soul. The first act in the religious life is to
detect right and wrong in the THOUGHT or INTENTION.
(We are to kill the snake in the egg) [59]
Jesus takes it a
step further when He uses the word “RIGHT” eye or hand; the
right hand or eye was considered the most important. Honor and Blessings were dispensed on the Right, and they understood the extreme
significance of this; cutting off of the most important part.[60]
Note: All sin
begins with the imagination and it’s the EYE that feeds the
imagination. Just as we would amputate
diseased organs to save a life, so the same with an eye or hand.
Should we gouge out our eye or cut off our
hand to keep from sinning? NO, it still would not stop us from
sinning. When Jesus was teaching this,
the Holy Spirit; the helper had not yet been poured out on the disciples. The New Covenant had not yet been completed;
Christ had not made the final sacrifice for our sins on the cross; but in the
end He did.
We are to SUBMIT ourselves to
the Holy Spirit; READ the Word of God
and PRACTICE His
concepts. As we do that; when SIN presents
itself; and it will, we will turn away and walk on the other side of the
street. A Believer may stumble and sin, but
he will not live in Sin;
if he does, he
is just a MAKE
BELIEVER.
Eat my Flesh – Drink my Blood
Eat my Flesh and Drink my Blood[61] was certainly a confounding statement and without doubt it was designed
to be so.[62] The OT
prohibited consuming blood and must have heightened their rejection of His
Words.[63] (Medically
speaking, the life is in the blood of the body.)
FAR OUT; if you picked up on
this scripture without reading the whole discourse you would probably have
thought that this man was CRAZY and walked away. Penetrating the
mysteries of God is a Divine Gift; the deeper realities offend some and in this
story MANY disciples walked away and abandoned
Christ.[64] (Although
not the inner circle of the twelve).[65]
Spiritual Truths can seem like utter nonsense unless
you have spiritual
perception. Jesus was
speaking of a SPIRITUAL partaking of His body
which was more
REAL that partaking of His PHYSICAL body.[66]
It literally implies an appetite; a
hunger and thirsting for the nourishment of Christ’s words.[67] Man does not live by bread alone, but by EVERY word that proceeds out of
the mouth of God.[68]
Jesus was
actually preparing them for the institution of the LORD’S
SUPPER. He would
literally be with them taking part in the symbolism of the giving of His life
on the Cross. The Torah
says; “For it is the blood (by reason of the life) that makes atonement
for sin”.[69]
If you think Eat my flesh and Drink by blood is crazy then how about the doctrine of “Cannibalism”.
The Catholic Church embraces a doctrine
of “Transubstantiation”
which says that the wine and bread actually becomes the blood
and flesh of Christ when you eat it. This is NOT
what Jesus taught in any form, shape or fashion.
This is more
than a ritual; J. Vernon McGee
says, “Its bread in your mouth, but Christ in
your heart.” Jesus is
speaking of an intimate relationship; in Him is Life and is the Light of the
world.[70] There is a SPIRITUAL
BLESSING that
comes with observing the Lord’s Supper.
The body, the
bread; the manna that came down from heaven was temporary, the bread of His word is eternal. Jesus said “The
Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing; the WORDS
I have spoken to you are full of the Spirit and life”.[71]
Take up your Cross
Take
up your cross; what’s that all about?[72] Every Jew knew that the man condemned to
crucifixion was often forced to carry a part of his own cross; a burden and a
sign of death. I had a friend that made
a large cross and put a little wheel on the bottom of it and pulled it around
Myrtle Beach, S.C. and as you would might suspect, he got a lot of “ribbing”
about his little wheel and the padding on his shoulder.
Well for him, this was a way he felt he
would have the opportunity to tell people about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He did it for years and in many cities with
his wife driving ahead of him in their van to meet him with food, drink and
rest.
But what did Jesus mean? This is NOT about taking up the Cross of Christ, this is
about taking up YOUR cross; it is
recognizing your own spiritual poverty. The cross that you are bearing is denying
yourself of your desires/wants and following His example; to DAILY put Christ in place of yourself.[73]
Hyperbole
At
a very young age, when I heard that Jesus said to “Pluck your eyes out if it causes you to sin”,[74]
became very bothersome to me. My very
first thoughts were; Number one, it would hurt me very badly and Number 2, I
would not be able to see anymore.
Another verse
said to cut off
my hand or even my foot if it causes
me to sin;[75]
that it would be better for me to be a cripple on earth than to be thrown into
hell at the judgment.
My
mother would say, “If you do that again, I’m going to skin you alive”. I never thought my mother would skin me; but
I sure got the point”; but did Jesus really mean what He said?
Hyperbole
is
not a word that we use very much in our everyday speech and seems to have taken
root during the elections when those running for office would often say things
and then seem to change their mind by saying that it was just; a figure of speech;
a hyperbole.
Hyperbole is an exaggeration that is used to
create a strong impression and evoke a strong feeling or emotion and is usually
NOT MEANT TO
BE TAKEN LITERALLY. Jesus is using a hyperbole to express how serious SEXUAL SIN actually
is. He did not have an expectation for
me to actually pluck my eye out or cut off my hand or foot, but was said to get
His point across that LUST is an ADDICTION that requires DRASTIC MEASURES.
The eye is the
door to the heart which guides the hands and feet in its actions. If you actually plucked out your eye or cut
off a hand or foot, it would not change anything since LUST is an issue of the Heart. Anyone who looks at
someone with lustful intent has already committed adultery in their heart
with them.[76] It’s in the Book
The
thing that should be plucked out is the source that peaks your sexual
interest; it might be pornographic tapes, DVD’s, books and even the INTERNET. If you
are addicted to porn, PLUCKING
OUT
the internet, and CUTTING OFF old Friends and old Places and old things that cause you to stumble would be a giant step
forward. Jesus is emphasizing the
significance of pursuing the kingdom of God; and just to get our attention, He
uses things that are very precious to us, like our eyes, hands and feet. The surgery suggested is not PHYSICAL, but SPIRITUAL; it is a
sickness; a condition of the heart.
As a teenager, I remember our church
giving out elastic bracelets with the letters WWJD on it… WHAT WOULD JESUS DO. IN A NUTSHELL,
THAT’S OUR CROSS; to do what Jesus would do; now that’s a cross
to bear. We are to Acknowledge, Serve and Glorify God in everything we do.
The hurdles and barricades in our life
that we bear are in common with Christ and we bear them because it is working
for our own good according to His purpose.[77]
Well, for me, my religion is inward, private and personal; well that’s just a COP OUT. You are EMBARRASSED that you are a
Christian; if you are ASHAMED of the Gospel of Jesus Christ before
other men, then when Jesus the Messiah returns, He will be ashamed of you before the Father.[78]
The person who hears the words of God and
puts them into practice is like building a house on a foundation of rock that CANNOT BE SHAKEN.[79] There is only ONE foundation; the
ONE that Jesus Christ has already laid.[80] You are either a Believer or a MAKE
BELEIVER.
IT’S NOT ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR
GOD
IT’S ABOUT WHAT HE HAS ALREADY DONE FOR
YOU.
[1] Matthew 4:4 - Live by EVERY word that God
speaks
[2] Isaiah 28:10 – Study God’s Word Precept
upon precept, Line upon line
[3] 1 Corenthians
[4] John
[6] John
[7] Acts 2:1 – They waited
and The Holy Spirit came
[8] Ephesians
[9] Luke 6:38– The measure you use; will be
measured back to you
[10] Proverbs 18:21 – You reap what you SPEAK
[11] Hosea 8:7 – Sow to the “WIND”,
you will reap the “Whirlwind”
Luke 12:34 – Your heart is where you spend your
money
Galatians 6:7-8 – If you sow to the Spirit you will reap everlasting
life
[13] 2 Corinthians 9:6 – Cheap giving; Cheap receiving, Generous
sowing, Generous reaping
[14] Job 4:8 - You will reap what you sow; those who sow trouble
will reap it
[15] Whatever you sow will come back to you later on
[16] Matthew 4:7 – Don’t TEST God
[17] Matthew 22:17-18 - Why do you test Me, you
hypocrites
[18] Malachi 3:10 – In your Giving; PROVE ME, TEST ME
[19] Malachi 3:10 – Bring the tithe into the storehouse and I will throw open
the floodgates of heaven and pour out so
much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it; TEST ME IN THIS
[20] Nehemiah
[21] Deuteronomy 26:12 – You
should give to the stranger, orphan and widow.
[22] Isaiah 58:6-7 – Tithing and Giving is the concept of Compassion -- Mark 12:28-31 – There are just Two Commandments of Love
[23] Matthew 5:40 – Give him your cloak, raise
the bar. -- Matthew 5:41 – Go the second
mile, raise the bar. -- Matthew 5:42 – Give to one who asks you, raise
the bar on giving.
[24] Mark 7:9-13 - You should help your FAMILY
regardless of Tradition
[25] 1 Timothy 6:10 – The LOVE of money is the root of all sorts of evil
[26] Matthew 19:24-26 – It is easier for a camel to go through the eye
of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God
[27] Matthew 7:13 – You must enter God’s Kingdom only by the NARROW GATE
[28] Luke 12:22 – Don’t worry about
life, food; or clothes for your body -- Luke
12:29 - Don’t worry about what you will eat or drink
[29] Luke 12:30 - God knows the things that you need
[30] Matthew 10:16 - Be as shrewd as snakes and
harmless as doves -- Proverbs 6:6 – Consider how the ant stores
up for the winter; consider its ways and be wise
[31] 2 Thessalonians 3:10 – IF YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO WORK; THEN
YOU SHOULD NOT EAT
[32] 2 Thessalonians 3:8 – Pay your way; do not
be a burden
[33] Matthew 5:20 – Our righteousness must be Greater than the Scribes and
Pharisees
[34] Matthew 5:48 - Be
PERFECT, as your heavenly Father is perfect
[35] Hebrews 8:7 – Man could
not keep the Old Covenant Laws
[36] Matthew 5:17-19 – The Law will not pass away until it is accomplished;
fulfilled
[37] Hebrews 8:8-9 – It was
prophesied that God would make a new covenant with Israel -- Jeremiah 31:31-33
– The New Covenant will be written on their hearts & mind -- Hebrews 8:6 – We now have a New Covenant; a BETTER Covenant
[39] Hosea 11:3 - They didn’t realize it was God that perfected them
[40] Romans 8:29 – The Believer is predestined to be conformed to the image of
Jesus Christ
[41] Romans 8:1 - There is NOW no condemnation for those in Christ -- Ephesians
2:8 – For by grace we have been saved through faith and not something we have done, doing or
plan to do.
[42] Hebrews 10:14 – We have been made PERFECT
and HOLY forever by the
blood of Jesus the Christ sacrificed on the cross
[43] Matthew 6:30 - LITTLE FAITH; Food, Clothes
-- Matthew 8:26 - LITTLE FAITH; Fear -- Matthew14:31 - LITTLE FAITH; Doubt -- Matthew 16:8 - LITTLE FAITH; Provisions --
Matthew 17:19-20 - LITTLE FAITH; Healing
[44] Matthew 17:20 – Mustard Seed Faith will Moves Mountains in your life
[45] 2 Corinthians 5:7 – We walk by our Faith, not by what we see -- Ephesians 2:8 – For by grace you have
been saved through faith
[46] Hebrews 11:1 - Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the
evidence of things not seen.
[47] Matthew 18:19 – Combine your FAITH with others according to God’s will -- Acts 12:5-17 – The prayer of agreement multiplies FAITH
[48] Joshua 23:10 – The Enemy tries to stop the promises of God, Each
one of you will put to flight a thousand of the enemy -- Daniel 10:12-13 – We battle in WAR IN ANOTHER DIMENSION -- Ephesians 6:12 - we wrestle against Principalities, Powers, Rulers of the Darkness in
another dimension
[49] Leviticus 26:8-9 – When five are in agreement
their Faith is
multiplied to fight a hundred,
[50] James
2:26 – Faith without Works is a DEAD FAITH
[51] 1 Thessalonians 5:17 – Pray every time you have a need, keep your mind on
things of good report, praise and worship.
[52] 1 Corinthians 12:31 - Desire earnestly the greater gifts, the ones
mentioned first -- 1 Corenthians 14:1 – Eagerly desire spiritual gifts,
especially prophecy
[53] James 5:15 – We lay hands
on the SICK, but it’s God that heals
[54] 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 – There is a
Gift of special FAITH over and above the faith given to you when you
believe.
[55] 2 Timothy 4:2 – Respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit whether it’s
convenient or not
[56] 1 Corenthians 13:8-10 –
The Gifts are only partial and will cease with the return of Jesus
[57] Romans 11:29 - THE GIFTS AND CALLING OF GOD ARE IRREVOCABLE
[58] Matthew 5:29-30 – It is better to Gouge out your
eye or Cut off your hand than to be separated from God for eternity
-- Matthew 18:8 – It is better to Cut off your foot or hand than be thrown into eternal
fire for eternity
[59] Matthew 5:29-30 – STOP the moment you
consider Sin
[60] Genesis 48:17-18 – The RIGHT HAND of blessings -- Hebrews 10:12 – The RIGHT HAND; the place of honor -- Revelation 13:16 - The RIGHT HAND; Mark of the beast
[61] Matthew 26:27-28 – This wine represents my blood; Drink it all of you
[62] John 6:52-53 – Eat my flesh and Drink my
blood.
[63] Leviticus 7:26 - Don't eat blood
[64] John 6:66 – At the FAR OUT sayings, many walked away and abandoned Christ
[65] John 6:67-68 - Lord,
to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life
[66] Luke 22:19 – This bread represents my body; Eat it in remembrance
of me
[67] John 6:48-50 – I am the bread of life; one
may eat of it and not die
[68] Matthew 4:4 – We are to live by every word that proceeds from the
mouth of God
[69] Leviticus 17:11 – It is the blood by reason of the life; makes
atonement
[70] John 1:4 - In him was life; that life was the light of all mankind
[71] John 6:63 – My words are full of the Spirit and Life
[72] Matthew 16:24 – Take up YOUR
cross and follow Me
[73] Luke 9:23 – Deny yourself and Take up your cross DAILY and follow Me.
[74] Matthew 18:9 – If your eye causes you to sin; then pluck it out
[75] Matthew 18:8 – Cut your hand or foot off if it causes you to sin
[76] Matthew 5:28 – Having lustful thoughts is the same as doing it
[77] Romans 8:27-28 – All things work together for
good for those that love God, and are
called according to His purpose
[78] Mark 8:34-38 - Take up your cross UNASHAMEDLY
and follow Me
[79] Luke 6:47-49 – He who hears my words and practices them builds his house on a foundation on rock that cannot be
shaken
[80] 1 Corinthians 3:11 - There is only one foundation the one already
laid: Jesus Christ.
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