God has chosen the poor of this world
James
{2:1} My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [the Lord] of glory, with respect of persons.
{2:2} For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; {2:3} And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool
{2:4} Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?
{2:5} Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
{2:6} But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?
*
How often do we graviate towards those that are clean, and upright, far from anything that reminds of those we call vagabonds, vagrants, bums, homeless street people, scary people. That's what they are to a lot of us- scary people. We fear them more than pity them. Though sometimes even fear turns to digust. Digust, fear, are some even angry at them? We imagine that at least if we aren't like the worst of the worst somehow we are *better* than they are. Being better than someone gives people a thrill of sorts, makes them feel better than they would if they didn't have someone to feel they're better than.
Reading this verse above it tells it like it is doesn't it?
We have respect to those who are dressed nice and have wealth and poise, and we want to please them while we shove those who don't meet those criterea out of the way, we are condescending to them for whatever reason we might come up with- fear, anger, or disgust, comtempt, you name it. Sure there are reasons why- we might assume these people are disease carriers- lice and whatnot, or unhealthy with contagious disease; surely one who looks like they should be sick has more of a chance of being sick. Logically the most well dressed, best looking person in all the world could still be a disease carrier but we don't assume that at all.
This part here- 'Are ye not then partial in yourselves and are become judges of evil thoughts?' That can be taken two ways- someone trying to judge evil thoughts or...having evil thoughts yourself because you judge others unjustly. We have become judges - having evil thoughts about others, putting on airs, being ungodly for sure because Jesus Christ would not act that way and we as his followers shouldn't act that way either. The poor, those who are considered the lowest of the low in our societies are the fartherst from the lowest. It is the world's chosen that underneath all their glitter and false beauty who possess the evil we like to associate solely with the lower society. This isn't to say that those who appear to be vile aren't, but there is a vileness of heart that God knows and we can only imagine.
'Hearken my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world - rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?'
God has CHOSEN the poor of this world-- RICH in FAITH!
Heirs of the kingdom which he hath PROMISED to them that LOVE HIM!
God help us all to realize just how poor we are without Him. It is only with Him that we are rich in faith. Heirs to the kingdom are given the promise, and the heirs are those that truly love him through that faith.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ now and forver, may we be heirs to the kingdom and not those who take on airs looking at the worldly things as those concerned only with worldly things do.
Amen
7/10/10
Eze 14:3 Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?
Setting up idols in our hearts.
Putting stumblingblocks of sin before our faces.
Do we do this? We all know what idols are, right? Let's take a look at the dictionary definition just to be sure…
Idol
I'DOL, n. [L. idolum; Gr. form or to see.]
1. An image, form or representation, usually of a man or other animal, consecrated as an object of worship; a pagan deity. Idols are usually statues or images, carved out of wood or stone, or formed of metals, particularly silver or gold.
The gods of the nations are idols. Psa 96.
2. An image.
Nor ever idol seemed so much alive.
3. A person loved and honored to adoration. The prince was the idol of the people.
4. Any thing on which we set our affections; that to which we indulge an excessive and sinful attachment.
Little children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5.
An idol is any thing which usurps the place of God in the hearts of his rational creatures.
5. A representation. [Not in use.]
*******
So, ANYTHING which usurps the place of God in our hearts. Technically that means we can be our own idols doesn't it? Our loved ones can be our idols, the television can be our idol, our cellphone, our computer, our animals, our jobs, our past times -- you name it, if it takes the place of God in our hearts, if we set our affections and have an excessive attachment to ANYTHING other than God we may be guilty of setting up idols in our hearts. Notice I said MAY BE, I hesitated. In truth it should read… if we set our affections and have an excessive attachment to ANYTHING other than God we ARE guilty of setting up idols in our hearts.
We ARE guilty.
Let's take a look at this next word…
Stumbling-block
STUMBLING-BLOCK, STUMBLING-STONE, n. [stumble and block or stone.] Any cause of stumbling; that which causes to err.
Any cause of stumbling, anything that causes us to err.
Putting stumblingblocks of sin before our faces.
Do we do this? Do we PUT things in our lives that cause us to sin?
We are estranged from God through our idols. We need to repent and turn from those idols. We need to turn our faces from ALL our abominations.
We are accountable for our lives make no mistake about it. We are accountable for cherishing sin. We are accountable for the idols we choose to worship.
'the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols'
Eze 14:4 Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols
Answered according to the MULTITUDE of our idols!
We don't like to think about these things. We'd rather hear about the compassion of a forgiving Savior than hear about our idols and the need to turn from them. So many people believe that Jesus will save us no matter what sins we cherish and cling to.
It was Jesus who said this--
'Joh 5:14 Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. '
Joh 8:11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
SIN NO MORE.
Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us
Easier said than done, I know… I know.
Perhaps examining our lives is a first step. Recognizing the idols in our hearts, noting the stumblingblocks of sin we've erected in our lives. Instead of calling sin something else, note it for what it is. There is no pretending with God. There is no deceiving God. We can deceive ourselves into believing anything, but God will not be deceived.
Our hope is in Christ now and always!
Col 3:1 If ye then be risen with Christ, SEEK those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
Col 3:2 SET your affection on things ABOVE, not on things on the earth.
Col 3:3 FOR YE ARE DEAD, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Col 3:4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
Col 3:5 MORTIFY therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
Col 3:6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
Col 3:7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
Col 3:8 But now ye also PUT OFF ALL these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
Col 3:9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have PUT OFF THE OLD MAN WITH HIS DEEDS;
Col 3:10 And have PUT ON THE NEW MAN, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
Col 3:11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but CHRIST IS ALL, AND IN ALL.
Col 3:12 PUT ON therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, BOWELS OF MERCIES, KINDNESS, HUMBLENESS OF MIND, MEEKNESS, LONGSUFFERING;
Col 3:13 FORBEARING ONE ANOTHER, and FORGIVING ONE ANOTHER, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Col 3:14 And above all these things PUT ON CHARITY, which is the bond of perfectness.
Col 3:15 And LET THE PEACE OF GOD RULE IN YOUR HEARTS, to the which also ye are called in one body; and BE YE THANKFUL.
Col 3:16 LET the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Col 3:17 And WHATSOEVER ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the LORD JESUS, GIVING thanks to God and the Father by him.
Col 3:18 Wives, SUBMIT yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.
Col 3:19 Husbands, LOVE your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Col 3:20 Children, OBEY your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.
Col 3:21 Fathers, PROVOKE NOT your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.
Col 3:22 Servants, OBEY in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, FEARING GOD:
Col 3:23 And WHATSOEVER ye do, do it heartily, as TO THE LORD, and not unto men;
Col 3:24 KNOWING that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for YE SERVE THE LORD CHRIST.
Col 3:25 BUT HE THAT DOETH WRONG SHALL RECEIVE FOR THE WRONG WHICH HE HATH DONE: AND THERE IS NO RESPECT OF PERSONS.
Col 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him
We receive our Savior, how?
Mat 19:25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
Mat 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
Mar 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
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.
Act 15:11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.
Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Joh 3:4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
Joh 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Joh 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Joh 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Joh 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Joh 3:9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
Joh 3:10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
Joh 3:11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
Joh 3:12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
Joh 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Joh 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
Joh 3:15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Joh 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Joh 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
Joh 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
Joh 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Act 16:30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
Act 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Rom 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
Co 15:31 I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
1Co 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
1Co 15:56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
We are save by the grace of our Lord and Savior and only by His grace. Believing in the Lord and His grace in all truth is transforming. While we might look at our lives and cringe with a sense of hopelessness trying to creep in believing that we'll never be free of our sins, or the idols of our hearts, we have to look to Christ and hope in Him! We must 'die daily'. TRULY WE MUST DIE DAILY trusting in our Savior for His righteousness, His love, His forgiveness- something we'll NEVER be able to earn, something we'll never deserve. Hope is in Christ and ONLY in Christ!
In His amazing love!
Amen.
7/10/11
The Sanctuary
Cleansing.
Once a year there
was a sanctuary cleansing- this fact is indisputable.
The sanctuary was where ALL the sacrifices were made. Sacrifices were
made because people knew they sinned.
I've been
thinking about sin and all this quite a bit and something in all my research has
stuck out at me.
The atoning
aspect of qorbanot
(((sacrifice)))) is
limited.
For the most
part, qorbanot (((sacrifice))))
only expiate UNINTENTIONAL sins, that is, sins committed because a person forgot
that this thing was a sin.
No atonement is needed for violations committed under duress or through lack of knowledge, and for the most part, qorbanot (((sacrifice)))) cannot atone for a malicious, deliberate sin.
In addition,
qorbanot have no expiating effect unless the person making the offering
sincerely repents his or her actions before making the offering, and makes
restitution to any person who was harmed by the violation.
Pasted
from <http://www.jewfaq.org/qorbanot.htm>
The Bible clearly
speaks of only being able to offer sacrifices for the sins of ignorance.
Meaning I couldn't go out and steal something knowingly and then go offer a
sacrifice for that sin and expect forgiveness. God would NEVER have set up a
system that allowed for the acceptance of sinning in any way. Unlike us humans
who often find ways around the justice system, there is no getting around God's
justice system.
So reading this
and thinking about the sins I've committed knowingly does it mean I can never
find forgiveness for them? No. It means I've placed myself in a position of
grave danger because whenever we sin intentionally we run the risk of becoming
heart hardened to sin and in becoming that way we don't feel our need of seeking
forgiveness with TRUE repentance. God forgives as He peers into the hearts of
man and seeing the heart of a man He knows whether or not that is a heart that
has a love of things sinful, a love of things that would keep that person from
being One with God in His love.
Is it any wonder
at all whatsoever that we read verses like this one-
Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and
renew a right spirit within me.
Or like this-
Rom 7:15 For that which I do I allow not: for
what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
Rom 7:16 If then I do that which I would not, I
consent unto the law that it is good.
Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it,
but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my
flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to
perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but
the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no
more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would
do good, evil is present with me.
Rom 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after
the inward man:
Rom 7:23 But I see another law in my members,
warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of
sin which is in my members.
Rom 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall
deliver me from the body of this death?
Rom 7:25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our
Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh
the law of sin.
*******
There were no
sacrifices offered for intentional sin, but there were sacrifices offered for
sins that were committed unintentionally, with no forethought.
We know what that's all about. We commit those types of sins all the
time, don't we? We think back and
go, oh, darn I should have… or oh, darn I shouldn't have done this or that. We have these types of sin in our
lives. When we recognize those sins we tend to not really blame ourselves
because it's the fault of a memory, or situational and we instead blame those
things taking the blame off ourselves. God doesn't and never wanted us to just
shift the blame off ourselves as if we hadn't committed the sin. God wanted, and
wants us, to recognize sin in our lives and to ask for forgiveness for our sins
not hide our sins. God wants us to recognize the things that separate us from
Him. God wants this because only when we recognize what keeps us from Him can we
get rid of that thing and stop being separated from Him. This is why a
sacrificial system was so necessary. Man separated himself from God and man has
been trying to fix that ever since and God made a way for this to be
possible.
God had to make
the way, man is the one who separated himself and had no right to even think he
could make a way to fix that. God alone as our Creator was the only one who
could fix the gap sin had made between man and God, the gap man had allowed to
be formed.
Because the
penalty of sinning was death and man knew this before they ever sinned that
first time, by death alone could this gap be filled.
The first animals
were sacrificed because man sinned and divested themselves of the covering of
God's glorious clothing of light that had been surrounding them.
To cover themselves - symbolic of covering sin- animals were sacrificed
right there in the garden of Eden, right there where they'd first sinned. The
sacrifices were made and man's nakedness was covered.
Sacrifices continued from then on and after Moses God gave mankind a
formalized system of sacrifices. This formalized system included a once a year
cleansing of the sanctuary. The
sanctuary being the place where the sacrifices would be made, the place where
God would meet with mankind. All the sins that were confessed upon the animals
and all the blood that was spilled to symbolically cover the sin and bridge that
gap between man and God, all of that was placed there on the sanctuary. Once a year the sanctuary needed to be
cleansed from all blood covered sins placed upon it. During this once a year
cleansing as we noted in yesterday's study, there was introduced a NEW element-
the scapegoat. This goat wasn't killed. A sacrifice was not made with this goat.
However, the goat carried ALL the sins that had been placed on that sanctuary
throughout the entire year. Those sins were symbolically put upon that goat and
then that goat was taken away out of the sanctuary and out of the entire city,
out far, far away into the wilderness where it was left never ever to find it's
way back to the sanctuary, or to God's people, never. It was left to perish in
the wilderness with all those sins upon it. Symbolically that goat had taken all
those blood covered sins upon it and they were taken away from the sanctuary,
the sanctuary was left cleansed for that brief period of time.
Why brief period of time? Because that symbolic gesture was just that- a
symbol and not the actual. And because it was not the actual ridding of sin once
and for all, the need for continued sacrifice, the need for continued covering
of sin, the need for the constant-if figurative- repairing of the breach between
man and God would go on. All this
would go on until our Savior became our Sacrifice.
Once our Savior became our Sacrifice HE would continue with this.
Daniel's prophecy
of 2300 years and then shall the
sanctuary be cleansed was given for a purpose and with a study of the earthly
sanctuary cleansing we can garner a better understanding- by the grace of our
God through the Holy Spirit's guidance.
*******
Leviticus 23
Lev 23:27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh
month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto
you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto
the LORD.
Lev 23:28 And ye shall do no work in that same
day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD
your God.
This verse from
the KJV is deceptive because in the Hebrew language the word 'atonement' is a
plural word--
kippûr
kip-poor'
From H3722;
expiation (only in plural): - atonement.
A day of
ATONEMENT(S).
It makes sense
because when you read about it all you can instantly see there is more than one
atonement.
Lev 16:33 And he shall make an atonement for the
holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the
congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the
priests, and for all the people of the congregation.
An atonement for
the holy sanctuary.
An atonement for
the tabernacle of the congregation.
An atonement for
the altar.
An atonement for
the priests and all the people of the congregation.
Clearly more than
one atonement.
We have to note
something else of importance. How were the people to relate to this day? There
were other major feasts and on those days this command was given-- Lev.
23:8,21,25,35,36)
Lev 23:8 But ye shall offer an offering made by
fire unto the LORD seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye
shall do no servile work
therein.
Lev 23:21 And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame
day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work
therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your
generations.
Lev 23:25 Ye shall do
no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto
the LORD.
Lev 23:35 On the first day shall be an holy
convocation: ye shall do no servile
work therein.
Lev 23:36 Seven days ye shall offer an offering
made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto
you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn
assembly; and ye shall do no servile
work therein.
Servile work is
occupational work.
However on the
Day of Atonements there was a different command--
Lev 23:28 And ye shall
do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an
atonement for you before the LORD your God.
The same command
as on the Sabbath.
Lev 23:3 Six days shall work be done: but the
seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall
do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your
dwellings.
This is an
important thing to note. The importance placed upon this special day.
Something else to
note-- There was a ceremonial
cleansing for the people from all their sins. Lev. 16:30 'For on that day shall the
priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all
your sins before the LORD.'
Also there was a
judgment taking place- Lev 23:29
For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day,
he shall be cut off from among his people.
Judgment. How it
was determined that a person wasn't afflicting their soul isn't mentioned
though-but obviously a judgment had to be made- a judging had to be done to make
a determination. This was a BIG
judgment too because the person would be CUT OFF from among his people.
This day of Atonements was a day of judging as
well- a dual aspect to this very special day.
Read these
verses-
Dan 7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth
from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times
ten thousand stood before him: the
judgment was set, and the books were opened.
Dan 8:14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand
and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary
be cleansed.
Rev 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and
give glory to him; for the hour of his
judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the
sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints:
here are they that keep the
commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Dual
aspects.
This study isn't
going to be over quickly, we're going to take it slow and hopefully get into a
lot of different aspects of God's word concerning all this.
By the grace of God we will find understanding as He would have us
understand as we watch and pray for the return of our Savior.
All through His
love!
Amen.