One day Jesus was teaching in the Temple when the Pharisees and the leaders came to Him and threw a prostitute before Him for His pronouncement of guilt to test Him. Jesus knowing their motives, did not condemn the woman but redirected the question back to the accusers asking them to cast the first stone if they could look within themselves and know for a certainty that they had no sin. John 8 reveals to us that none of the accusers were able to cast a stone since they all had sin in them and one by one they all left Jesus and the woman alone in the Temple ground. And Jesus, turning to the woman, pronounced her sins as forgiven and told her not to sin any more.
In the same chapter, we read of Jesus teaching the crowd about Himself and prophesying about His death, how he would suffer for our sakes and in John 8::32 we read, "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." What did Jesus mean by that statement? I submit to you that He was making reference, in this context, to His mission on Earth - to die for our sins and that there is forgiveness in Him when we turn to Him in faith. Certainly the Pharisees did not understand that and that is why they could not be saved; the prostitute, coming to the end of herself, embraced the Truth (personified in Christ) and was given a second chance.
That is why I believe the Apostle Paul wrote with such agony in Romans 9:1, "I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit" when he remembered his own countrymen how they had missed the whole truth of what Jesus had come to do for them and how they had rejected their only hope for them (and us).
Mat 13:34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable,
ReplyDeleteMat 13:35 so that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, "I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept SECRET from the foundation of the world."
Mar 4:10 And when He was alone, they who were about Him, with the Twelve, asked Him concerning the parable.
Mar 4:11 And He said to them, To you( the elects) it is given to know the mystery( secret) of the kingdom of God. But to those outside, all these things are given in parables
Mar 4:12 so that seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Was there an intention to save the pharisees ? If yes, why not plainly explain the way to salvation through grace instead of speaking in parables? I submit to you that God blinded them( read the above: it was GIVEN for the twelve to understand, not the religious leaders). Likewise, the truth is hidden from today's religious leaders and your foundation where all the wrong stuff comes from - which you had not bother to study nor question its substance - is rooted in dead theologians of the past. No doubt,these theologians were brilliant in the eyes of the people as were the pharisees and lawyers to the people during Jesus time. But God revealed His secrets to obscure folks some with little education if at all to humble the 'wise' in this world - including religious leaders.
Isn't the reason why your leaders couldn't see God's Kingdom in those stories or parables?
Likewise, God, who is the same yesterday, today and forever, keeps His secret from the 'wise' and the 'strong' of this world. If you come from man's temple today, you are followers of the blind leaders. They couldn't understand the cross then, they couldn't understand the cross now.
In the book of Hosea, the prophet was told by God to take an adulterous woman for a wife. In another translation, the woman was mentioned as a whore. So was that a sin or not? Doesn't it blow your humanistic theology when God ask His prophet to commit sexual sin?
Hos 1:2 The beginning of Jehovah speaking by Hosea. And Jehovah said to Hosea, Go, take to yourself a wife of adultery and children of adultery. For the land has utterly gone LUSTING away from Jehovah.
Or have you missed the real message behind every parable or stories? God was acutally rebuking his 'church' adulterous relation with other idolatrous nations.
Likewise, today's churches are guilty of the same by nature of their STRUCTURAL SIN! So when you read stories in the bible, look at the bigger picture in the heart of God. The blind leaders can't see beyond their own glory and wealth and make you focus on you, me and I.
Mar 8:36 For what shall it profit a man if he shall GAIN the whole world and lose his own soul?
Mar 8:37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Mar 8:38 Therefore whoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My Words in this ADULTEROUS and sinful generation, the Son of Man shall also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.
You see, your church is teaching you crap and you don't even know it. The focus of have shifted from their sin to your petty sins. Not that your lawlessness matter not, but rather, often it is the sin of the church that stumble the rests. But alas, these blind leaders of the blind deny their sin therefore, their sin shall remain. Those who worship in such temples or churches are equally blind.
Joh 8:33 They answered Him, We are Abraham's seed and were never in bondage to anyone. How do you say, You will be made free?
Joh 8:34 Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Whoever practices sin is the slave of sin.
Joh 8:35 And the slave does not abide in the house forever, but the Son abides forever.
Abraham is a type of Christ - the promise seed. The jews, a type of christians who are spiritual jews in christ, boasted their heritage in the promise seed - in which you are guilty too. But Jesus said they are living in SIN! Still no clue to that sin?
In jesus words, you people who operate in and from man's temple are slave to SIN -and you don't even know it. And Jesus will say to you on that day, I never knew you!
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name do many mighty works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Why attribute iniquity to those for doing 'good'(they are not murderers or rapists) which is DONE IN THE NAME OF THE LORD - that many are guilty of today?
Friend, you got your cross all wrong because you are as blind as those who led you!In fact, you know nothing about the cross that's why your gospel has no bearing on the cross YOU ARE TO CARRY!