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About-Him.Com Devotional 03-06-2004
Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Jesus said that in the last days, there would be distress of nations with perplexity( Luke 21:25). We are seeing this demonstrated every day on the international scene. The root of the present struggle against terrorism and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is simply hatred against Israel.
Another war is raging. That is that God's moral law is being challenged concerning the sanctity of marriage. The only way I know to pray in these matters is, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done."
The Life of Christ from His baptism to His Ascension:
126: The Pharisees Rebuked: Mt. 15:1-20; Mk. 7:1-23
Mark 7:1 ¶ Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from
Jerusalem.
2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault.
3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.
No doubt, it appeared to the Pharisees and their ever present committee of investigation that the ministry of Jesus was self destructing. He had refused to become a political Messiah. He had greatly reduced His following by forcing His disciples to choose between the spiritual and the natural.
They observed Jesus’ disciples eating without washing their hands, in violation of the oral tradition of the elders. The oral tradition of the elders was simply a collection of commentaries (Mishnah) explaining and expanding upon the laws given to Moses at Mt. Sinai. At this time this collection of commentaries handed down by the rabbin was held to be superior to the written inspired law of God .
It must have been hard to be a Pharisee in that day. They washed everything they came in contact with for fear of defilement. Their religious opponents, the Sadducees are said to have stated that the Pharisees would wash the sun, if it were possible.
The disciples were guilty of a grave offense, actually punishable by death, and Jesus didn’t deny it. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for caring more about their traditions, such as the washing of pots and pans than the precepts of God. He recalled the words of Isaiah (Isaiah 29:13) concerning hypocrites who honored God with their lips, while their hearts were far removed from Him.
Next came a stinging rebuke concerning how these people cared for their elderly parents. Moses had commanded that parents be honored, with the promise of long life for doing so (Ex. 20:12). However, tradition said that anything dedicated for the use of God could not be affected, even if it meant that the old folks went hungry. All one had to say when they were approached for aid by their parents was "Corban" (this has been dedicated as a gift to God and you can’t have it), and the old folks had to look elsewhere for help.
Of course, this became a handy dodge, the crafty Pharisees didn’t necessarily lose control of their dedicated possessions. They were all good ole boys who belonged to the inner circle of the temple, and just like the cliques and political clubs of today, they all watched out for each other.
Jesus then called the nearby people to come closer. He told them that nothing external , such as eating with dirty hands, could defile a man, only that which proceeded from the heart.
Later, His closer disciples asked for an explanation. Jesus explained that anything that enters the mouth, went into the belly and was naturally eliminated. He then explained the things that do defile us, all originate from the heart.
Mark 7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Conclusion and Application:
These people held the oral tradition of the elders to be more binding to the written word of God. Things haven't changed a bit. We still have groups who hold that their tradition is just as binding as the word.
Another particular group, has placed their own books on an equal status with the bible. there is a sore penalty waiting for any who will add to or take away from God's word, the bible.
Do we have any modern traditions that annul the word of God? I believe we do. Have we kept people from entering the kingdom because they did not conform to our rules and regulation? I know we have and we will be held accountable.
God help us to totally submit our own hearts to be conformed to the Spirit of His Word (De 6:5; Mt 22:37). We do not want to be like these Pharisees who blocked the door to the kingdom of heaven (Mt 23:13). They wouldn’t enter and wouldn’t allow anyone else to enter either.
One Liner
Prayer is like bathing - go too long without either and people will notice.
In About-Him
Peter's Shadow by Rev. R.E. Strange - A very uplifting and challenging article concerning the anointing of the Holy Spirit. http://about-him.com/guest41.html .
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Topical Scripture Studies on 30 subjects http://about-him.com/wordarc.html
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Humor
A little boy was on his way to Sunday School. His mother had given him two quarters, one for offering and one for ice cream (it's been a long time since you could by ice cream for a quarter).
As he walked to church, he jiggled the two coins in his hands and one of them fell into an open sewer grate.
The boy said "Sorry Lord, there goes your quarter."
Keep Looking Up!
Don & Marie Spooner
About Him! Ministries
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