The
Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12 – Christogenea on Talkshoe, August 24th,
2012
In
the last two chapters of Luke we have seen Christ demonstrate that
His opponents were of the race of Cain – because only Cain could be
held responsible for the blood of Abel - and that the serpents of the
time of Christ were indeed related to the long-ago fall of satan, the
“angels” which had rebelled from God and had gone off into
iniquity. The blood of the prophets is found in Mystery Babylon, for
which see Revelation 18:24. This understanding agrees perfectly with
the statements in John, in chapter 10 of his gospel where we see that
the Judaeans opposing Christ were not of His sheep, and in chapter 8
of his gospel where we see that those opposed to Christ were of their
“father, the devil”, who was a “murderer from the beginning”,
and only Cain could be called a “murderer from the beginning”.
With certainty, Cain was a devil for the same reason that the Edomite
Judas Iscariot was a devil, because he too was of bastard seed. All
of this also agrees with the first epistle of John, where it insists
that Christians love one another, contrasting Cain where it says “12
Not as Kain who was from of the Wicked One and slaughtered his
brother; and with delight he slaughtered him, because his deeds were
evil, but those of his brother righteous.”
Now there is no evidence that Cain was ever a student of the serpent,
but there is plenty of evidence that Cain was the offspring of a
serpent! The mystery of iniquity is genetic, and opposed to that is
the first law of Yahweh our God, which is that of kind after kind.
In
Chapter 12 of Luke there is no break in the narrative from Luke
chapter 11, and the chapter divisions are often set in arbitrary
places. In the Christogenea New Testament, the paragraph does not
even break from the last verses of Luke chapter 11, which state: “53
And from that time of His coming forth the scribes and the Pharisees
began to press upon Him cleverly and question Him provokingly
concerning many things, 54 laying in wait for Him to catch something
from His mouth.”
It
is a common theme in the gospel, that the Pharisees were continually
looking for something in the teachings of Christ by which they may
accuse Him and have Him condemned simply for the things which he
spoke. That same attitude still exists among the jews of today.
Matthew 22:15: “Then
going the Pharisees took counsel, how they may entrap Him in speech.”
Jeremiah
5:26: “For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as
he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.”
From
the Wisdom of Sirach, chapter 51: “1 I will thank thee, O Lord and
King, and praise thee, O God my Saviour: I do give praise unto thy
name: 2 For thou art my defender and helper, and has preserved my
body from destruction, and from the snare of the slanderous tongue,
and from the lips that forge lies, and has been mine helper against
mine adversaries: 3 And hast delivered me, according to the multitude
of thy mercies and greatness of thy name, from the teeth of them that
were ready to devour me, and out of the hands of such as sought after
my life, and from the manifold afflictions which I had; 4 From the
choking of fire on every side, and from the midst of the fire which I
kindled not; 5 From the depth of the belly of hell, from an unclean
tongue, and from lying words. 6 By an accusation to the king from an
unrighteous tongue my soul drew near even unto death, my life was
near to the hell beneath. 7 They compassed me on every side, and
there was no man to help me: I looked for the succour of men, but
there was none. 8 Then thought I upon thy mercy, O Lord, and upon thy
acts of old, how thou deliverest such as wait for thee, and savest
them out of the hands of the enemies. 9 Then lifted I up my
supplications from the earth, and prayed for deliverance from death.
10 I called upon the Lord, the Father of my Lord, that he would not
leave me in the days of my trouble, and in the time of the proud,
when there was no help.
Luke,
Chapter 12:
1
Upon these things,
with the myriads of the
crowd gathering so as to trample one another, He began to
speak to His students: “Above all, keep yourselves from the leaven
– which is hypocrisy – of the Pharisees.
The
plain statement that the leaven of the Pharisees is their hypocrisy
does not mean that the leaven of the Pharisees is limited to their
hypocrisy, and in Matthew 16:2 we see that the leaven is also the
doctrine of both the Pharisees and Sadducees.
2
Now there is nothing concealed which shall not be revealed, and
secret which shall not be made known. 3 But rather, whatever you
speak in the darkness shall be heard in the light, and that which you
have spoken in the ear in the vaults shall be proclaimed upon the
house-tops!
A
ταμιεῖον is “a treasury...a magazine” (L &
S), and so it is vault here, describing a private chamber.
In
Matthew chapter 10 this is recorded a little differently, and
although Christ may have repeated these words several times at this
point in His ministry, the accounts are roughly describing the same
events:
Matthew
10:26-27: “26
Therefore you should not fear them. For nothing is hidden which shall
not be revealed and secret which shall not be made known. 27 That
which I say to you in the darkness you speak in the light, and that
which you hear in the ear proclaim upon the houses!”
In
the early years of Christianity, when Christians were persecuted at
the instigation of the jews, the words of Christ were often whispered
in the secret places. Later, Christianity eventually prevailed over
the evils of judaism and paganism, and the words of Christ were
indeed shouted from the housetops.
How
can a Christian ever be afraid to speak the truth? Christians should
never be afraid to speak the truth, and if they are, then they are
not putting their faith in their God. If you are persecuted for
speaking the truth, be proud of it – your reward is great in
heaven!
4
“And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who
condemn the body to death, then after these things do not have
anything more which they may do. 5 But I shall make known to you whom
you should fear: You should fear He whom after that condemnation has
authority [or
power, or means]
to cast into Gehenna! Yea, I say to you, Him you should fear!
6 Are not five sparrows sold for two assarii? And not one of
them is forgotten before Yahweh. 7 But even the hairs of your heads
have all been counted. Do not fear, you are worth more than many
sparrows.
An
assarion (ἀσσάριον, 787), or assarius (-ium) was a coin
which at the time of Christ was worth about 1/16th of a denarius (see
Luke 7:41; 10:35; 20:24), and so if a denarius was an expected day’s
wage for a laborer (i.e. Matthew Chapter 20), then an assarion is
about 30 minutes’ worth.
The
word Gehenna, γέεννα (1067), is a Hellenization. Thayer
gives a concise history of the place. The word is derived from γαι-
(a prefix formed from γαῖα, a form of γῆ, 1093, which means
land) and ἐννα, the “Hinnom” of the Old Testament.
The word appears once in the LXX, Γέεννα, at Joshua 18:16.
Elsewhere in the LXX it is the “valley of Ennom” or the “valley
of the son of Ennom”, i.e. Joshua 15:8, 4 (2) Kings 23:10, II
Chronicles 33:6, and Jeremiah 7:31, and 32, 19:6 and 39 (32):5. Ennom
is in the King James Version Hinnom (Strong’s Hebrew #2011).
Apparently the sacrifice of children by fire occurred here (2
Chronicles 33:6) and so its usage in this context is quite profound.
Later, and in the time of Christ, the place was apparently used for
the burning of refuse of all sorts.
Christians
should fear God alone, because only Yahweh our God has power over our
true life, which is in the Spirit and not in the body of flesh.
Christians should have no fear of jew nor beast. We should only have
fear of God. This statement of Christ's is not disconnected from what
precedes. Christians should never be afraid to speak truth, that
“whatever you speak in the
darkness shall be heard in the light”. If we deny or conceal
the truth before our fellows, what shall our God think of us when we
stand before Him? From Brenton's Septuagint 4 Maccabees 13:12-17,
which while we may or may not accept the book as canon, it
nevertheless reflects the attitudes that Christ also professes here:
“12 And another [said], Remember of what stock ye are; and by the
hand of our father Isaac endured to be slain for the sake of piety.
13 And one and all, looking on each other serene and confident, said,
Let us sacrifice with all our heart our souls to God who gave them,
and employ our bodies for the keeping of the law. 14 Let us not fear
him who thinketh he killeth [who thinks that he kills – those who
presume to destroy us merely because they kill our fleshly bodies];
15 for great is the trial of soul and danger of eternal torment laid
up for those who transgress the commandment of God. 16 Let us arm
ourselves, therefore, in the abnegation of the divine reasoning. 17
If we suffer thus, Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob will receive us, and
all the fathers will commend us.” The book, 4 Maccabees, is a moral
one, about the power of faith over fleshly desire, and the story here
is about seven brethren and their father who chose death over
violation of the law at the command of Antiochus, the Greek ruler of
Syria.
Isaiah
51: “7 Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in
whose heart is my law; fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye
afraid of their revilings. 8 For the moth shall eat them up like a
garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool: but my righteousness
shall be for ever, and my salvation from generation to generation.”
8
“Now I say to you, all who would agree with me before men, then the
Son of Man shall agree with him before the messengers of Yahweh. 9
But he denying Me before men, I shall deny before the messengers of
Yahweh.
The
third century papyrus P45
wants verse 9 in its entirety, however an honest scribal error is
evident.
The
verb rendered “agree” here is ὁμολογέω (3670) , and it
means “to speak
together...I. to
speak one language...II.
to hold the same
language with, i.e.
to agree with...to
agree to a thing,
allow,
admit,
confess,
concede,
grant...”
(Liddell & Scott). The word “confess” may replace
“agree” in both occurrences here. Yet to “confess”, or
“profess” Christ honestly is to agree with all of His words.
Nearly all mainstream Christian sects have serious problems with one
statement of Christ's or another, but especially of Matthew 15:24
where He said “I have not been sent except to the lost sheep of the
house of Israel!”
Christians
can never deny the truth of the gospel before men – or we shall
indeed suffer for it in the much greater judgement to come. Daniel
12:2: “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall
awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting
contempt.” Many may take these words of Christ here in Luke, which
are also recorded in Matthew 10:32-33, and limit them to refer to an
outright denial of Christ Himself. I would think that they mean
something much deeper – for while many of us profess Christ with
our lips, we deny Him in one word or another, because we
pick-and-choose which Scriptures we want to accept, and which
Scriptures we want to reject. In essence, denying any part of the
Gospel, is a denial of Christ. At 1 Samuel 2:30 Yahweh said “...
them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be
lightly esteemed”.
Luke
9:26: “Indeed whoever would be ashamed of Me and My words, him the
Son of Man shall be ashamed of, when He should come in the honor of
His and that of the Father and of the holy messengers.”
1
Timothy 6:3-5: “3 If anyone teaches differently and does not
capitulate to sound words: those of our Prince Yahshua Christ, and to
the doctrine in accordance with piety 4 he is conceited, standing
upon nothing, but is mad for inquiries and arguments over semantics
from which come envy, strife, blasphemies, wicked suspicions, 5
constant contentions corrupting the minds of men and defrauding them
of the truth, supposing piety to be a means of gain.”
2
Corinthians chapter 10: “1 Now I myself, Paul, exhort you by the
gentleness and fairness of the Anointed, who concerning stature am
humble among you, but being absent am bold towards you; 2 but I want,
not being present, that you would be bold with the confidence with
which I reckon you should be daring towards certain others who are
reckoning us as walking in accordance with the flesh. 3 Indeed
walking in the flesh, we do not serve in accordance with flesh. 4 For
the arms of our warfare are not fleshly, but through Yahweh they are
able to destroy strongholds, 5 destroying reasonings and every
bulwark raising itself up against the knowledge of Yahweh, and taking
captive every thought into the obedience of the Anointed; 6 also
being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, whenever you shall
have fulfilled your obedience.”
The
calling of Christ is a calling of obedience unto Yahweh. Hosea 2:7,
speaking of Israel: “And she shall follow after her lovers, but she
shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find
them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband;
for then was it better with me than now.” That first husband is
Yahweh, manifest as Yahshua Christ come in the flesh.
Daniel
7:13-14: “13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the
Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of
days, and they brought him near before him. 14 And there was given
him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and
languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be
destroyed.”
Daniel
7:27: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the
kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the
saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and
all dominions shall serve and obey him.”
10
And all who would speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be
forgiven him. But to whom should blaspheme against the Holy Spirit,
it shall not be forgiven.
We
see a similar statement by Christ recorded at Matthew 12:31-32: ““31
For this reason I say to you, every error and blasphemy shall be
remitted for men, but blasphemy of the Spirit shall not be remitted.
32 And whoever should speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall
be remitted for him, but whoever should speak against the Holy
Spirit, it shall not be remitted for him, neither in this age nor in
that which is coming!”
The
Greek word ἅγιος,
in the Biblical context means separated
and devoted to the purposes of God.
This is the word translated as holy
in the phrase Holy
Spirit.
We can see from passages found in the Bible at Exodus 19:5-6, 1 Kings
8:53, and 1 Peter 2:9 that this mandate for Israel to be a separate
people never changed. In the Old Testament the word for “holy”
comes
from the Hebrew word qodesh,
Strong's number 6944, which primarily means apartness.
The phrase is found in the Old Testament at Psalm 51:11 and Isaiah
63:10-11. From these
passages it seems to refer both to the presence of the Spirit of God
and the Spirit which God bestowed upon the Adamic man. This is what
Christ and the apostles refer to when they tell us that we are not of
the world, and as John explains in the fourth chapter of his first
epistle, that those who are not of the Adamic race have indeed been
created by the world, and not by God, John's message in its context
being for the children of Israel exclusively. John also mentions a
sin which is “unto death”, where he says at 1 John 5:16, from the
KJV: “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death,
he shall ask [meaning to ask in prayer], and he [meaning God] shall
give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto
death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.” For this reason I
believe that “blasphemy of the Spirit” is the promotion of
integration and race-mixing, and this is also the “sin unto death”.
This sin causes the death of the Adamic race, which is in turn an act
of war against that Spirit which God bestowed upon Adamic man. By
blaspheming the Holy Spirit, one seeks to rebel against God and
destroy His Adamic creation, where the first promise of Salvation is
in clinging to our own race, as it is expressed in Genesis 3:22: “And
the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know
good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of
the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever”.
11
“And when they bring you in before the assembly halls and the
rulers and the authorities, do not have concern for how or what you
should answer or what you should speak. 12 For the Holy Spirit shall
teach you in that hour the things which it is necessary to speak.”
Paul
of Tarsus expected those to whom he brought the gospel to be readers
of the Scripture. From Acts chapter 17: “10 Then the brethren
forthwith sent off Paul and Silas by night to Beroia, who departed
arriving in the assembly hall of the Judaeans. 11 These were of more
noble a race than those in Thessalonika, who accepted the Word with
all eagerness, each day examining the writings, if these things would
hold thusly. 12 So the many from among them believed, and of the
noble Greek women and men not a few. ” Christ also, for instance at
John 5:39, expected those hearing of Him to be familiar with the
Scriptures, where He tells the people: “Search the scriptures; for
in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which
testify of me.” Paul wrote Timothy, in 2 Timothy chapter 4, to
“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season”, which
requires a familiarity with the writings. He also wrote him at 2
Timothy 3:16 that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God,
and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness”. Both James and Peter extol the value
of a knowledge in the Scripture in their epistles. Paul also appeals
to or quotes directly from the Scripture in every single epistle. One
should not use these words of Christ as an excuse not to study His
Word. It is our study of the written word which works with the spirit
in us, by which the Spirit of God inspires us.
Colossians
3:16: “16 The word of Christ must dwell in you abundantly, with all
wisdom, teaching and advising each other with psalms, hymns,
spiritual songs, in grace singing in your hearts to Yahweh. ”
13
Then spoke to Him one from the crowd: “Teacher, tell my brother to
divide the inheritance with me!” 14 And He said to him: “Man! Who
appointed Me judge or divider over you?” 15 Then He said to them:
“You watch, and keep yourself from all greediness, because not in
any abundance is life itself, from its possessions.”
Christ
wanted no part in their earthly quarrels over material possessions.
And Christians should remember this in their own prayers.
Matthew
5:38-42: “38 You have heard that it has been said ‘An eye for an
eye’ and ‘A tooth for a tooth’. 39 Now I say to you, not to
oppose evil, but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn for him
also the other. 40 And to him desiring for you to be judged and to
receive your cloak, give up to him also the shirt. 41 And whoever
shall press you for one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him asking
you, and you should not turn away from him wishing to borrow from
you.”
16
Then He spoke to them a parable, saying: “The land of a certain
wealthy man produced bountifully. 17 And he had reasoned within
himself, saying ‘What shall I do, since I do not have where I may
gather my fruits?’ 18 And he said ‘This I shall do, I shall take
down my storehouse and I shall build a greater, and I shall gather
there all the grain and my goods, 19 and I will say to my soul: Soul,
you have many goods laid up for many years. Rest, eat, drink, be
happy!’ 20 Then Yahweh said to him ‘Fool! This night your life is
demanded of you. The things which you have prepared, for whom shall
they be?’ 21 So is he storing up riches for himself and not for
Yahweh.”
All
of the wealth we may amass will not do us any good when we die. From
Luke 18:18-23: “18
And one of the leaders questioned Him saying 'Good Teacher, what
should I do that I may inherit eternal life?' 19 And Yahshua said to
him 'Why do you call Me good? No one is good except one, Yahweh. 20
Know the commandments: You should not commit adultery, you should not
murder, you should not steal, you should not testify falsely, honor
your father and mother.' 21 Then he said 'All these things I have
kept from youth!' 22 And hearing it Yahshua said to him: 'Then one
thing is left for you: All whatever you have, sell and distribute to
the poor, and you shall have treasure in the heavens. Then come,
follow Me.' 23 But hearing these things he had become very grieved,
for he was exceedingly wealthy.”
Everything
taught by Christ in this chapter, up to this point, is reflected in
the 49th
Psalm:
Psalm
49:1 Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the
world: 2 Both low and high, rich and poor, together. 3 My mouth shall
speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of
understanding. 4 I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my
dark saying upon the harp. 5 Wherefore should I fear in the days of
evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about? 6 They
that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of
their riches; 7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor
give to God a ransom for him: 8 (For the redemption of their soul is
precious, and it ceaseth for ever:) 9 That he should still live for
ever, and not see corruption. 10 For he seeth that wise men die,
likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their
wealth to others. 11 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall
continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they
call their lands after their own names. 12 Nevertheless man being in
honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish. 13 This their
way is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.
14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them;
and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and
their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling. 15 But
God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall
receive me. Selah. 16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when
the glory of his house is increased; 17 For when he dieth he shall
carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him. 18 Though
while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when
thou doest well to thyself. 19 He shall go to the generation of his
fathers; they shall never see light. 20 Man that is in honour, and
understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.
22
Then He said to His students: “For this reason I say to you, do not
have care for the soul, what you should eat, nor for the body, what
you should be clothed in. 23 For the soul is greater than food and
the body than clothing. 24 Observe the crows, that they do not sow,
nor do they harvest. With them is no treasury nor storehouse, and
Yahweh feeds them. How much more are you worth than the birds?
Job
38:41 “Who provides for the raven his food? when his young ones cry
unto God, they wander for lack of meat.”
25
Who caring among you is able to add a cubit to his stature? 26
Therefore if you are not able to do the least, why should you care
about the rest? 27 Observe the lilies, how they grow. They neither
labor nor do they spin yarn,
but I say to you, not even Solomon in all his honor was clothed as
one of these! 28 And if the grass is in the field
today, and tomorrow being cast into a furnace Yahweh clothes thusly,
how much more you, you of little faith? 29 Then you do not seek what
you should eat and what
you should drink, and do not get excited. 30 For all these things the
nations of the cosmos seek after, but your Father knows
that you have need of these things. 31 Moreover, you seek His
Kingdom, and these things shall be added to you. 32 Fear not, little
flock, because it has pleased your Father to give to you the Kingdom!
Christ
must have taught these precepts many times during His
three-and-a-half year ministry. A version of this teaching which is
quite similar, but not precisely the same, is found in the Sermon on
the Mount in Matthew chapter 6.
Of
course, His words here do not mean that we should walk around naked
and hungry and thirsty. Rather, they challenge us to consider whether
or not we should put our trust in ourselves, how we can magnify
ourselves or make ourselves appear before men, or whether we should
put our faith in God, how He shall care for us and whether He shall
make sure that we are provided for, not caring for what men think of
us.
Psalm
37 also teaches much of what Christ does here. Here are the opening
verses: “1 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be
thou envious against the workers of iniquity. 2 For they shall soon
be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. 3 Trust in
the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily
thou shalt be fed.”
33
“You sell your belongings and give charity. Make for yourselves
purses which do not grow old, an unfailing treasure in the heavens,
which thief does not approach nor moth corrupt. 34 For where your
treasure is, there also your heart shall be!
Galatians
6:7-8: “7 Do not be deceived, Yahweh is not mocked; 'Indeed
whatever a man should sow, that he also shall reap.' 8 Because he who
is sowing for his own flesh, from the flesh shall he reap
destruction; but he who is sowing for the Spirit, from the Spirit he
shall reap life eternal.”
There
are people, even Identity Christians, who would amass silver and gold
and other such things. This is contrary to the teachings of the
Gospel. In response to such people, James says in chapter 5 of his
epistle “1 Come on, those who are wealthy now, weep, crying out
upon your coming hardships! 2 Your wealth is putrefied and your
garments have become moth-eaten! 3 Your gold and silver are corroded
and their corrosion shall be for a testimony to you and it shall eat
your flesh as fire. You have saved up for the last days. 4 Behold,
the wages of the laborers reaping your fields which have been
withheld by you cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have entered
into the ears of the Prince of Armies! 5 You have lived luxuriously
and lewdly upon the earth: you have nourished your hearts in a day of
slaughter! 6 You have condemned, you have murdered the righteous, who
did not oppose you!” If you can amass wealth, you are
short-changing your brethren.
35
“Your loins must be girded and lamps burning, 36 and you be like
men expecting their master, when he may return from the wedding, that
coming and knocking immediately they may open for him. 37 Blessed are
those servants, who the master coming shall find awake. Truly I say
to you that he shall gird himself and have them recline and coming
forth shall serve them!
The
word γρηγορέω (1127) may mean to watch as a verb, and
the adjective, γρηγορίκος is watchful. The noun,
γρηγορία, is wakefulness.
38
Even if in the second and in the third watch he should come and find
thusly, blessed are they. 39 But you must know this: that if the
master of the house had known in which hour the thief comes, he would
not have allowed his house to be dug through. 40 And you also must be
ready, because in the hour which you do not expect comes the Son of
Man.”
Christians
are told to deny themselves and follow Christ (Matthew 16:24), and to
love their brethren (John chapters 13, 15, and 1 John chapter 3).
Paul said at 1 Thessalonians chapter 4: “9 Now concerning brotherly
love, you have no need to write to you, for you yourselves are taught
by Yahweh for which to love one another.” Christ came to give His
life for His brethren, as their kinsman redeemer. His purpose was to
serve His brethren. Therefore at Luke 22:25-27 He tells us: “25 …
The kings of the nations rule over them, and those having authority
over them are called ‘benefactors’. 26 But not so with you.
Rather he who is greater among you must be as the inferior, and he
who is leader as the servant. 27 For who is greater, he dining or he
serving? Is it not he who is reclining? But I in the midst of you am
as he serving!” If we are to follow Christ, then we are to serve
our brethren, and not serve ourselves of them. When He comes, if He
finds us doing so, we shall be rewarded and He shall serve us. If He
does not find us doing so, we have no reward.
41
Then Petros said “Prince, to us do You speak this parable, or also
to all?” 42 And the Prince said “Who then is the faithful,
sensible steward, whom the master appoints over his attendants, to
give the allotment of
grain at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant, who coming his
master finds doing thusly. 44 Truthfully I say to you that he shall
appoint him over all his belongings. 45 But if that servant should
say in his heart ‘My master delays coming’, and he begins to beat
the menservants and maidservants, then to eat and to drink and be
drunken, 46 the master of that servant shall arrive in a day in which
he does not expect, and at an hour in which he does not know, and he
will cut him in two, and he shall set his portion with the faithless!
If
we have wealth, it is not necessarily a blessing from God, but often
it is a test from God, as it was in the case of Job, or a commission
to fulfill a purpose of God, as He tells us in Deuteronomy chapter 8:
“16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers
knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to
do thee good at thy latter end; 17 And thou say in thine heart, My
power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. 18 But
thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee
power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he
sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. 19 And it shall be, if
thou do at all forget the LORD thy God, and walk after other gods,
and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that
ye shall surely perish. 20 As the nations which the LORD destroyeth
before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be
obedient unto the voice of the LORD your God.”
If
Yahweh has enriched us, it is only that we may “give
the allotment of grain at the proper time”, that we may be
good stewards and in turn provide for our brethren. If He returns and
finds us doing so, we shall have a great reward. If he finds us
otherwise, then we have already had our reward!
47
“Now that servant who knowing the will of his master and not
preparing or doing according to his will shall be clubbed much. 48
But he not knowing yet doing such worthy of blows shall be clubbed
little. All to whom much is given, much shall be sought from him, and
to whom much is committed, far more shall be demanded of him.
Having
this knowledge and not acting on it, we invite far more punishment
upon ourselves than those who are ignorant. For that reason James in
his epistle says in chapter 3: “1 You must not produce many
teachers, my brethren, knowing that we shall receive a greater
judgment.”
49
“I have come to cast fire upon the earth, and what do I purpose if
already it is ignited?
The
Word of Truth works within the people of God and causes them to
conflict with evil. Therefore Peter says in the first chapter of his
first epistle: “3 Blessed is Yahweh, even the Father
of our Prince Yahshua Christ, who according to His great mercy has
engendered us from above into a living hope through the resurrection
of Yahshua Christ from among the dead, 4 for an inheritance
incorruptible and undefiled and unfading, being kept in the heavens
for us 5 who are being preserved by the power of Yahweh through faith
for a salvation prepared to be revealed in the last time. 6 In which
you must rejoice, if for a short time now it is necessary being
pained by various trials, 7 in order that the test of your faith,
much more valuable than gold which is destroyed even being tested by
fire, would be found in praise and honor and dignity at the
revelation of Yahshua Christ, 8 whom not having seen you love, in
whom now not seeing but believing you rejoice with an indescribable
and illustrious joy, 9 acquiring the result of your faith:
preservation of your souls.”
50
Now I have an immersion to be immersed in, and how am I constrained
until when it should be completed!
Here
Christ tells us what His true baptism is, and He can only be
referring to His own trial, which was His crucifixion and
resurrection. Therefore Paul, who told the Ephesians that there was
one Lord, one faith, and one baptism, at Ephesians 4:5, also asked
the Romans “Or are you ignorant that as long as we are
immersed in Christ Yahshua, into His death we are immersed?”
If there is one baptism in Christ, it is in his death, and it is not
in water, which was the baptism of John and not of Christ. The words
of John the Baptist, from Matthew 3:11: “Indeed I immerse you in
water for repentance, but He coming after me is more powerful than
me, of whom I am not worthy to carry the sandals. He shall immerse
you in the Holy Spirit, and in fire!” Accepting the death of
Christ and the reasons for His death, we immerse ourselves in Him. He
being the Lamb of God, we find salvation in His blood, just as our
ancient fathers were spared of the blood of a lamb in the Passover in
Egypt. Being immersed in His death, we survive the fiery trials of
this life.
51
Do you suppose that I have come to offer peace in the earth? No, I
say to you, but rather division! 52 For there shall be from this time
five divided in one house, three against two and two against three.
53 Father shall be divided against son and son against father, mother
against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against
wife and wife against mother-in-law.”
From
Matthew 10:34-36: ““34
You should not suppose that I have come to put peace upon the earth.
I have not come to put peace, but a sword! 35 For I have come to
divide a man against his father and a daughter against her mother and
a bride against her mother-in-law, 36 and a man’s enemies are those
of his house!”
Here
Christ quotes Micah 7:6, which reads: “For the son dishonoureth the
father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in
law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own
house.” And so we have it today, there is nothing new under the
sun.
No
message divides families and households today like the message of a
need for racial purity found in Christian Identity Covenant Theology.
For this reason does father fight with son, and for this reason are
son and daughter-in-law divided against the family they married into.
Christianity
is not about our own sick ideas of “peace”, which are sick
because they usually include placating aliens and sinners. A true
peace-maker is one who is willing to obey the laws of God, and
reproves his fellows when they do not obey those laws. Contrary to
the profession of the phony “judeo-Christians”, Christ is not
about peace, but rather about obedience to God, love for our own
kind, and the consequences of violating those precepts.
Identity
Christians today can imagine just what it was like for Christians in
ancient pagan Rome. We are often shunned and excoriated by our own
families, because we refuse to accept the universal religion of the
empire. Yes, there is little difference between modern ecumenism and
the universal paganism of old Rome, where just about anything became
acceptable so long as one worshipped Caesar. Today anything is
acceptable so long as one worships the U.S. Government.
Today
Identity Christians are for the most part merely shunned, but in the
first few centuries of the Christian era, our forebears were often
reported, arrested, and martyred merely for professing Christ. With
jews in full control of our government, do not think that it cannot
happen here in this age, for in many cases it already has.
54
Then He said also to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising up in
the west, immediately you say that a thunderstorm comes, and so it
happens. 55 And when the south wind is blowing, you say that there
shall be hot weather, and it happens. 56 Hypocrites! You know to
examine the appearance of the earth and of the heaven, yet how do you
not know to examine this time?
While
I do not find a similar such analogy anywhere else in Scripture, the
meaning is obvious, that if the opponents of Christ could read the
plain signs encountered in daily life, then they should have been
able to recognize Him, yet they could not. Their lack of such
ability, coupled with their claims to be people of Israel, and
therefore people of God, made them hypocrites.
57
“Now why also from among yourselves do you not judge that which is
righteous? 58 For as you go forward with your opponent
up to the magistrate, while on the road offer work, to be released by
him, that they not then drag you off to the judge, and the judge hand
you over to the bailiff, and the bailiff cast you into prison. 59 I
say to you, by no means would you depart from there, until you have
repaid even the last cent!”
This
also is found in Matthew's version of the account of the Sermon on
the Mount, in Matthew 5:25-26, and so Christ very likely repeated it
often.
Proverbs
25:8, from the NAS: “Do not go out hastily to argue your case;
Otherwise, what will you do in the end, When your neighbor puts you
to shame?”
The
theme continues from verse 13, where the two men wanted Yahshua to
rightly divide their inheritance, evidently because they could not
come to an agreement. Christians need not trouble themselves with
disputes over world;y riches, and if they do, chances are they will
end up worse off than if they would have simply paid whatever was
demanded of them in the first place. Paul addresses the same issue,
in 1 Corinthians chapter 6:
“Dare
any of you, having a matter against another, have it decided before
the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Do you not know that
the saints will judge the Society? And if by you the Society is
judged, are you unworthy of the smallest trials? 3 Do you not know
that we will judge Messengers, let alone the things of this life? 4
So then if you should have trial of things pertaining to this life,
those who esteem themselves least in the assembly, those will be set
to judge. 5 I speak from respect to you. So is there among you not
even one wise, who would be able to decide among his brethren? 6 But
brother is brought to trial by brother, and this before those not
believing! 7 So then already there is altogether discomfiture among
you, seeing that you have matters for judgment among yourselves. Why
would you not still more be wronged? Why would you not still more be
defrauded? 8 You would rather do wrong and defraud, and this of a
brother? 9 Or do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the
kingdom of Yahweh? Do not be led astray: neither fornicators, nor
idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminates, nor homosexuals, 10 nor
thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor railers, nor rapacious
shall inherit the kingdom of Yahweh. 11 And these things some of you
may have been, but you have cleansed yourselves; moreover you have
been sanctified, moreover you have been deemed fit, in the name of
Prince Yahshua Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.”
A Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles is currently being presented by William Finck on Christogenea Internet Radio every Friday night at 8PM Eastern.
