Results 1 - 5 of 5
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Matt 16:6 explained | Matt 16:6 | Elijah_Jones | 91393 | ||
I agree that when we recognize ungodliness in our lives we need to get rid of it, to experience the fullness that God has for us. However, that being said, I believe Jesus was really hitting hard on something else here. The Pharisees were FANATICAL in their approach to living out the exact letter of the law. They tithed right down to the seeds of plants! They made LONG prayers, they did everything they could to follow the law of God. The problem is that they trusted in THEIR ability to fulfill the law to save them.. rather than trusting GOD to save them. They searched the scriptures thinking in them they would find salvation, and yet they would NOT come to the LIVING WORD.. the very person of Jesus. Legalism.. trusting our performance rather than God's performance of redemption.. was the leaven that they had added to the pure laws of God. Jesus illustrated that very clearly in his parable of the tax collector smiting his chest before the Lord going away justified, whereas the Pharisee was thankful that he was walkiing the "straight and narrow". There is a warning that infuriated the Pharisees here. That their strict adherance that started at a very young age was NOT SUFFICIENT to enter the Kingdom of God. The pharisees would be right at home in many our our churches today.. I fear. Another way it has been stated is the Jesus-Plus doctrines. That something more than genuined faith in the person and work of Jesus is required for salvation. This at the very simplest term is teh yeast to which Jesus refers. The greatest danger for SINCERE Christians is not so much being trapped into sin as it is to trust in our level of obediance to save us. This is an affront to God leading to having our hearts empty of forgivenss, grace, and mercy. Which Jesus again said was the downfall when he said to learn what mercy and compassion was all about. They were keeping people from entering into the place of worship because those people did not measure up to the Pharisees standards of holiness and purity. Not understanding that LOVE was the fulfillment of the law. The Pharisees... instead of helping to lift the burden of sin from people.. were actually piling heavy loads upon the very people that God wanted to save. Thus Jesus warned of the YOKE of the Pharisees, and that His yoke was light. Now... as it is written.. we do not turn the grace of God into license to commit sin. That would be a perversion of the truth Jesus is revealing here. But rather, we understand that GRACE has been given us through faith in Jesus. That is our confidence and worthy trust. Our obediance will bring us into the fullness of God's riches, and will spare us from much unpleasantness. So my words are NOT to be confused that we can eat, drink, and be merry, but rather we can have life, and life abundantly.. as we sit at the feet of Jesus and learn of Him. We can REST in his work, and show obediance to Him out of a glad and grateful heart! Be blessed in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! |
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2 | Matt 16:6 explained | Matt 16:6 | bronx hulk | 91501 | ||
OK brother, I hear ya. But I have a question about what you said. At the time Jesus came and started preaching, wasn't everyone SUPPOSED to be following the law? It wasn't until Jesus was crucified and risen that the law became insufficient. So the Pharisees Fanatical approach as you put it would actually be a good thing. I think (in my humble opinion) that Jesus was referring to their evil motives rather than their adherence to the law. I don't think they were trying to follow the law, but just give the appereance that they were to have the position of power. Like He said, they are doing things to be recognized of men, not of God. Jesus was saying that their hearts were in it for themselves, not for the good of God. So we might be on the same train of thought here. In that unless your heart is in it, the law you follow won't do you any good. That is true even now. Like you said, love is the fulfillment of the law. It always has been. |
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3 | Matt 16:6 explained | Matt 16:6 | Elijah_Jones | 91525 | ||
The dangerous thing about Legalism is that at the surface it can appear to be obediance. The real problem is not that the Pharisees were being faulted for keeping the law, but rather in their TRUSTING THEMSELVES in obtaining righteousness through their strict keeping of the law. This is the essence of self-righteousness.. which I believe is one of the most, if not THE most dangerous places to fall into. Jesus was able to reach into the hearts of prostitutues, adulterers, extortionists, and murderers (man on the cross with him that joined him in paradise for one).. yet he met an unresistable force in the hardness of heart of the most religious adherants of His day. This yeast.. which is something added to the mix of keeping the law.. caused those infected to become satisfied with their own spiritual condition, and not recognizing the need for the saviour. This is a theme throughout the all of Scripture, not just the new testament. Despite all their strict adherance to following the law, their righteousness was still as "filthy rags". One of the first glimpeses into this condition was when the Lord began speaking to me of Cain and Abel. Cain brought forth an offering from the work of his hands (works) while Abel brought forth the blood of a sacrifice (redemption thru the spilled life of another). Unfortunately, the same yeast showed up nearly right away in the early church.. despite the very clear sound of grace being issued. A classic example (and there are many, many others) is Galations 3:1. No man is justified by the keeping of the Law, but rather through grace and the atoning work of the Cross. Again.. let me state clearly. Obediance FROM A RIGHT HEART, is absolutely essential for our faith to be alive (James illustrates this perhaps most clearly in all of scripture) and for us to live in Kingdom Reality in the here and now. So I am not suggesting or condoning "dead" faith in Christ thru grace as license to commit sin. They are opposite ends of the spectrum.. and constitue a turning to the left or the right. One turn is legalism, which is anethema to God as it decieves us into trusting ourselves instead of Christ and rests in pride and self-righteousness, the other is wanton sinning and disobediance and a jaded indifference to the consequences of living apart from the tenets of God. Neither place is where we want to be, but of the two.. legalism is the most dangerous, as it rests in OUR PERCIEVED goodness, rather than the darkness of our deeds which our hearts already know to be wrong and shameful. As I've said before and now say again, love is the most important of all. Love is a higher law than even the old covenant's laid out law.. and much more demanding. That is why Jesus pointed out it is easier to go thru the motions of keeping the law than it is to have the heart desire to keep it. IE.. "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." The thing that so infuriated the Pharisees was the Lord's willingness to show mercy, forgiveness, and compassion to those that the Pharisee's deemed "unworthy". We see this conflict everywhere we turn where the Lord encounted the religious teachers of the day. It pointed out to them that they were no better off than the "worst of the sinners" despite all their hard work. Thank you brother for this oppurtunity for me to share my thoughts with you. I pray that we will edify and build up each others faith and that no root of bitterness would spring up in any of the things we might see any differently on. However, from reading what you are posting, I certainly cannot say I disagree with what you have written in any substantial way. I do agree, for instance, that another BIG problem the Pharisees had was looking for the approval of men, rather than the approval of God and the hypocrisy of their actions in this regard. I am only saying that I don't believe that particular issue was the one that was being referred to as leaven. Rather I feel that is a SYMPTOM of self-righteousness and trusting in ourselves, rather than the root. Play acting and self-righteos pomp always "feel" better is we have an approving audience. |
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4 | Matt 16:6 explained | Matt 16:6 | bronx hulk | 91529 | ||
You wrote alot here. I'm going to need to take time to sit down and really read this before I respond. Unfortunately I'm at work now and I need to render unto Ceaser that which is Ceasers! Can't in good conscience do this at work, as much as I'd like to :o) I don't think there will be any bitterness. This is great interaction with the saints. And great training. To write your thoughts clearly takes alot of skill. It is much harder than speaking. All I care about is people's hearts. As long as you love Jesus, any differences are not important. God Bless you brother! |
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5 | Matt 16:6 explained | Matt 16:6 | Elijah_Jones | 91531 | ||
Amen and Bless you!! | ||||||