by Jack
Mt 23:1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples . . .
Mt 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Ouch! I wouldn't want to be a scribe or Pharisee on this occasion!
Because they were beloved, they also were disciplined. Such is the way of God.
We can learn from their ordeal, too. Notice that Jesus is speaking in the present tense . . . you shut up the kingdom of heaven, you don't go in, you don't allow those entering to go in. Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven in terms of the present and He talks as if the scribes and Pharisees are actually preventing people from entering it! How could it be possible for anyone to prevent anyone from entering into the kingdom of heaven? How is it that Jesus credits the scribes and Pharisees with actually preventing some who were entering from actually getting in?
If the kingdom of heaven is the place we go after we die, (if we die in Christ), what could the Pharisees possibly do to keep anyone out, and why would Jesus say they have already done it? What sense does it make for Jesus to tell the Pharisees and scribes that they are not entering either, unless the kingdom of heaven is something we are supposed to enter while still living?
Ro 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
Here we have a definition from scripture of the kingdom: "Righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Let's replace the phrase, "kingdom of heaven" with the definition and see how it works.
Mt 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit against men: for ye neither have righteousness peace and joy in the Holy Spirit yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to attain it.
Could this be what Jesus was referring too? Speaking of the scribes and Pharisees to the multitudes Jesus said, "Mt 23:4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."
What were these grievous burdens that the scribes and Pharisees were placing on the men they taught? Why, they taught that unless men kept the law, they would be eternally condemned, and that there was no hope for those who were not Jews.
Try carrying that burden through life. Too heavy?
Many are carrying that burden, or a similar burden, doubting their own salvation, or perhaps worse, having no hope.
Jesus didn't come to burden us.
Mt 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Jesus encourages us to learn of Him! When we know Him we enjoy life in His kingdom . . .
Joh 4:10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
Joh 17:3 And in this consists the Life of the Ages--in knowing Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent. (WNT)
We enter the kingdom by knowing the Savior!
Joh 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
When we teach salvation has "ANYTHING" to do with our works, we are shutting out people from the kingdom and not entering in ourselves. When we teach we must receive and believe, we are putting the cart before the horse. God saves, then we believe and recieve. While we were yet sinners. . . Christ died for the ungodly . . . when we were enemies . . . Christ died for us. We are not saved by our will, or by our choice, we choose because He has saved us.
Come to Him now, he will in no wise cast you out. Come to Him later, His grace is sufficient.
It is better to come to Him now because life is hell apart from Him. There is no real peace, no lasting joy, no righteousness apart from Him. To die without Him is to go to judgment, to die with Him is to go to Life, but after the judgment, all will turn to Him, gratefully and joyfully.
This is the patience of the saints. We are not as those who have no hope, but we have the ultimate hope in the final perfection and reconciliation of all to one another and to God.
Are your belief's keeping you from living in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit? Do you teach others that their salvation depends on them? Are you keeping anyone out of the kingdom?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
That is weird . . . He saves us in spite of ourselves, in spite of what we or anyone else does.
In this case . . . How can we be guilty of keeping someone out of what God intended? If God wills them in the Kingdom - however you are trying to hard-define it at the moment - can you explain how any other will can keep them out?
His will prevails in the larger matter, but cannot help in the smaller?
The Kingdom of God transcends time, it transcends borders, it transcends circumstances and Jesus has opened the Kingdom of God for those who He has chosen to enter now, and He will ultimately bring all into His Kingdom. Jesus credits the scribes and Pharisees with keeping people out and not entering themselves. This is obviously to their detriment, yet in due time, Christ will bring everyone into complete, willing, loving, joyful subjection. 1Cor 15:24-28)
This isn't weird, it's beautiful. At one time, it could be said that Saul the Pharisee was keeping people out of God's kingdom too. Time changed that situation and Saul became Paul. God changed Saul to Paul.
This isn't weird. It's beautiful.
God's will is accomplished in every matter, absolutely. But God wills that a process take place. For some, we experience His mercy while some others experience His wrath and then His mercy. Still the first shall be last and the last first. He has considered all in unbelief that He might have mercy on all.
No, no . . . the weird part is that you are trying to chide us for something you just declared we can't even do. THAT is weird . . . a contradiction, actually . . . evidence that you don't really know what you profess so boldly.
"Because they were beloved, they also were disciplined. Such is the way of God."
Beloved, eh? Whitewashed sepluchres . . . those that God spews out of His mouth . . . for whom He has reserved wrath. He doesn't give wrath to those that are "beloved" . . . nope, to those He hates.
Here is the word of the Lord for you:
2 Chron 19:2 "Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the LORD? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the LORD."
Wrath . . . for you, Jack. You have no idea what evil you are in the middle of.
"chide us" and "we"
Interesting. I've only seen your name on the comments I've addressed. Who is "us" and "we"?
If what I am sharing seems to be a contradiction to you, it is possible that it seems so because you are not understanding what I'm saying. It is possible that you don't want to understand what I'm saying because before you heard it you already decided it couldn't be true.
Time after time you make bold unsupportable statements. Time after time I address them with scripture, logic and reason, yet you remain undaunted. Here's another:
Beloved, eh? Whitewashed sepluchres . . . those that God spews out of His mouth . . . for whom He has reserved wrath. He doesn't give wrath to those that are "beloved" . . . nope, to those He hates.
You disagree with the Holy Spirit who spoke through Paul:
Ro 11:28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.
Ro 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
As for his wrath, Pr 13:24 He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.
Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
God loves sinners, He doesn't hate them as we have discussed before. The old English word "hate" merely means "loves less".
As for 2Chron 19:2 my friend. Read the whole book. That was the word of Jehu to Jehoshaphat. If it was the word of the Lord to anyone, why did the Lord continue to bless, protect and commend Jehoshaphat?
As for God's wrath on me. I deserve wrath and I have earned the death sentence according to God's word. There is nothing about me that deserves mercy or grace let alone blessing, yet God has blessed me beyond measure and continues to do so. Should he subject me to wrath, be careful not to gloat. He subjected Job to wrath and Jobs friends who lovingly thought Job needed to repent were severely reproved.
It's interesting that the thing that bothered God the most was that Job's friends were misrepresenting Him.
Job 42:7 And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.
One of us is clearly wrong, if not both of us in our representation of God.
You represent Him as loving His friends and hateful and limitless in severity towards His enemies.
I represent Him as loving and unlimited in mercy to everyone.
Post a Comment