14/08/13

Many kinds of people give audience to the Word

Luke 19:47,48 - And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him, And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.

Just two days back I had a meeting with a few people from a Church named Church of Zion (there are so many churches of Zion this is the 3rd lot I met) and these people were visiting the people in the area where I go to teach the Bible every month. My people were troubled with their teachings on the Sabbath. These people were imposing the Jewish understanding of the Sabbath unto these Believers, so they asked me to confront them.

The first thing these people tried to do when they came was to give a long sermon to the people on the Sabbath. I being aware of their tactics cut them in between and asked them to speak to me one to one stating pure scriptures and no beating around the bush.

These people had no basic understanding of the Bible or of the things of faith. I did give ear to them in the start and then started confronting them according to the scriptures they stated.

Before I started refuting them we came to an agreement that Jesus did not break any Law, that He did not change it, but fulfilled it. Then point wise I started to prove to them that the days in Genesis 1 was not a 24hr day so God did not rest on the 7th day as they understand and the rest was not the kind of rest they thought. Secondly they also agreed that the Commandment on Sabbath as written in Exodus 20:8-11 was impossible to keep as per today. So if they could not fulfil the Law in its fullness then they doing part of it was as good as breaking the Law but they still persisted in trying to keep the Law which they could not keep.

For me trying to teach them the real meaning of Sabbath was out of the question since they came with closed minds thus I had to use the same approach what Jesus did with the Pharisees, put them into a confusing of their own.

I showed them how the Jews always accused Jesus of breaking the Sabbath and according to Matthew 12:5 Jesus stated that the Priest broke the Law of the Sabbath and yet were considered blameless. Then I showed them that as Believers in Christ we are called to do the work of God and therefore are called Priest (1 Peter 2:9 - Royal Priesthood) and thus we as Priest are not called to keep the Sabbath. That is why Jesus said the Sabbath was for man and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). They got very upset and left the place.

Paul knowing the people even though had lack of understanding of scriptures and the Kingdom of God were still judging others and causing them to spiritually fall.

Like in today's message there are all kinds of people that give audience to the Word of God. Some are like the Pharisees who considered themselves religious policemen, even though they lacked understanding of scriptures. They did not mind trampling over people's lives just to prove they were right in their misunderstanding. They could not answer the questions which Jesus put to them many times that they confronted Him, yet they thought they knew everything.

The Lord is asking us in what attitude do we come to the Word of God? Do we come as the Pharisees who took all things in part and thus hardened our hearts, or do we come like those who were hearing Jesus and were giving due importance to His every word. Everything we understand from scriptures should be in line as Jesus did for grace and Truth came through Jesus Christ.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, give us an attitude or a child that desires to learn when we come to You to receive your Word. Help not to harden our heart by taking your Word partly but let us learn to give due importance to each and every word that comes from You. Lord, it is by You that Truth came and people started to understand scriptures in its spirit and not follow it in its letter. Fil;l us with more and more of your Spirit of Truth...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference ]
Exodus 20:8-11
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

1 Peter 2:9 - But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

Mark 2:27 - And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

John 1:17 - For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The Word of God was given free to us, therefore we should also share it freely with others. (All rights are with God)