Tag Archives: kingdom of God

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – ENOUGH FOR EVERYONE

Bible Study, ,

ENOUGH FOR EVERYONE

“Again He asked, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.'” Luke 13:20, 21 (NIV).

When two or more parables appear together, called a ‘chain’, to interpret them correctly one must look for the common theme. This story follows the one about the smallest of seeds, the mustard seed, which grows into a tree large enough to shelter the birds. This story tells about a small amount of yeast that leavens a large amount of dough. So what’s the point?

Yeast is often used in Scripture to illustrate the permeating power of evil. During the period of the Passover celebration, the people of God had to remove all yeast from their homes. The apostle Paul picked up on this when he was dealing with the Corinthian church’s failure to deal with a member who had fallen into gross sexual sin.

“…Don’t you know that a little yeast works through a whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast – as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb has been sacrificed.” 1 Corinthians 5:6, 7 (NIV).

In Jesus’ parable, however, yeast is not about evil but about the power of a small amount to permeate a large amount of dough. Such is the power of God’s kingdom to spread its influence across the entire globe. God does not work by force but by influence. Other religions tend to equate power with force. “Believe what we tell you or suffer the consequences.” God’s Spirit works by persuading and convincing, by appealing to the mind and conscience.

There have been times in history when people have turned to the Lord en masse in unusual circumstances like, for example, when the Holy Spirit fell on the believers on the day of Pentecost, and during great spiritual revivals. However, God’s way is also the slow but sure way of people influencing people one by one. Great revivals have swept people into the kingdom of God by the thousands, as have huge evangelistic campaigns all over the world. But the witness of a transformed life is able to influence the mind and convince the heart that Jesus is Lord.

Look, for example, at the experience of the Apostle Paul, a one-time Pharisee and religious fanatic, persecuting believers to the death because he thought he was right. When he was faced with the courageous witness of Stephen, the first of many who laid down their lives for the truth of the gospel, Saul of Tarsus was profoundly moved, although he was only finally convinced on the Damascus road when Jesus Himself confronted him.

The influence of Jesus’ love-slave, Paul, just one man, has touched the entire world throughout all the generations through his preaching and writings, a small amount of yeast permeating the lives of millions of people for two thousand years.

Evil produces revulsion in the hearts of sane-thinking people. Threats of death may manipulate behaviour but only the powerful influence of the gospel of Jesus can transform hearts, change behaviour and redirect destinies towards unselfish service, usefulness and eternal life in the presence of the Most High God.

This simple truth gives great encouragement to God’s children. However insignificant we may feel, however little we may be able to do, there is enough power in our little to influence those around us and to change our environment. As people see the kingdom in action, those who have a heart to respond, receive the King and experience His gracious transforming power that slowly affects those around them.

And so on, and so on…

Jesus Did Not Say That We Must Be Born Again

Apologetics, , ,

JESUS DID NOT SAY THAT WE MUST BE BORN AGAIN

Here’s another misunderstanding that has been turned into a doctrine. In fact it has become more than a doctrine. It has become a category – as though it were one of three categories of Christians. You get Christians; then you get “born-again” Christians; and then you get “born-again, Spirit-filled” Christians. Have you ever heard people using these distinctions? Of course it all depends on the stream of the faith to which you belong.

I wonder what Jesus would think about this!

From where does the expression “born again” come? “From Jesus, of course!” you retort. Yes, He did use it once, on a specific occasion to a specific person, but I wonder whether He meant it to be used as a category for believers or did He have something else in mind?

Let’s examine the circumstances of His use of the words, “born again”.

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one can perform the signs you are doing if God were not with Him.’

Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’ (John 3: 1-3)

“There you have it. Jesus did say that we must be born again,” you declare. Ah, but once again we must examine the context.

First of all, who was Nicodemus? He was a Pharisee, a strictly religious Jew who was a stickler for obeying, not so much the letter of Torah, as the letter of the myriad interpretations added to Torah by the ancient rabbis who had sh’mikah. They were acknowledged to have authority to make pronouncements about the meaning and application of the Law, which were not necessarily an expression of God’s original intention.

Like all the religious leaders of the Jews, Nicodemus believed that his adherence to the Law, which included all the additions, qualified him to be “righteous” before God. However, when he was confronted by Jesus, he realised that there was something missing both in his belief system and in his life. He was honest enough to admit, unlike his fellow Pharisees, that Jesus was more than a man because of His works. No one could do the miracles Jesus did unless His power came from God. He was not foolish enough to attribute Jesus’ power to the devil.

Jesus cut him short. No explanations. Just a bald statement of fact. As a member of the human race, not just the privileged class of Pharisees, Nicodemus was under divine judgment for his sin like everyone else. No amount of rule-keeping qualified him for exemption. If he wanted to experience life in the kingdom of God – the life Jesus exemplified by His words and works, he would have to have a brand new start.

This was not about being “born again” as a new status. This was about “seeing” the kingdom of God. The Jews of Jesus’ day, including Nicodemus, misunderstood what Jesus meant by “the kingdom of God”. They were obsessed with the passion to get rid of the Romans and to re-establish the glorious kingdom of David. Many thought that Jesus would do this – overthrow the Roman occupation and set up their own kingdom once again.

But Nicodemus had to understand that God’s kingdom was not about the restoration of David’s kingdom, but the restoration of God’s rule in his heart. That would take much more than a new ruler in Israel. It demanded a brand new start through the power of the Holy Spirit. To “see” the kingdom of God was to have insight into what it was and how it worked. This was not possible while he, Nicodemus was still in the “flesh”.

Being “born again” was not a title or a status – it was a qualification for new life under the rule of God in the heart. It demanded a divine intervention through the Holy Spirit. It required a change of heart and nature to have the ”eyes” of the Spirit and to understand and walk in God’s ways. No amount of religious status or rigmarole could awaken him out of the death of sin.

But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. (Eph. 3: 4-6)

To describe people as “born again” is meaningless unless they are born again into an understanding and experience of life in the kingdom of God. Far too many who claim the title know nothing about living under God’s rule or even being true disciples of Jesus. A disciple is one who follows Jesus so closely that he becomes a replica of his Master, not just a casual adherent to a church or denomination. He is one who submits to Jesus as Lord and lives in obedience to His word.

To the Jews who believed in Him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. . . (John 8: 31)

No, being born again is neither a title not a category of religious persuasion, but a drastic and dramatic work of the Holy Spirit. In response to faith in Jesus, He raises the dead spirit to life, transfers the believer in Jesus from Satan’s dominion of darkness to the kingdom of God, changes the heart and nature from selfishness and greed to unselfishness and generosity, and patiently refines the character until the believer begins to resemble his Master by becoming the true son of God which he is.

The expression, “born again” is used only twice in Scripture, by Jesus to Nicodemus in John 3, and by Peter in his first letter. Look at the context.

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduing word of God. (1 Peter 1: 22-23)

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (Copyright © 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

My second book, Learning to be a Disciple – The Way of the Master (Copyright © 2015, Partridge Publishing), companion volume to Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart, has been released in paperback and digital format on www.amazon.com.

It can be ordered directly from www.partridgepublishing.com or from your local branch of the publishing company. Details of where you can buy the book will be posted in due course.

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Mysteries Of The Kingdom

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MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM

He also said, ‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain – first the stalk, then the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.’ (Mark 4:26-29).

God’s kingdom is real, but it is different from any other kingdom on earth. It has no geographical boundaries; it is here but unseen; it is among us now but yet to come; its influence spreads across the globe like yeast in a lump of dough; it transcends colour and culture; it unites all people under one rule and its constitution is summed up in one word – love.

How does one explain a kingdom like that? Jesus used many parables to highlight aspects of God’s kingdom because it is like a diamond with many facets. It is like a seed which has within in the power to germinate and grow. A farmer sows seed in his field with the hope that it will grow without he is heal. If he has prepared the soil well and provides water to sustain its growth, the seed will do what it is designed to do.

As he waits patiently, the field begins to turn green; the tiny plants appear above the ground; the plants thrive and eventually produce the awaited harvest. What does the farmer do when the harvest is ripe? He brings in the crop because the seed has served its purpose.

Jesus had already explained that the word of God is seed. Like a grain of wheat, it has the capacity to germinate in the soil of people’s hearts. Given the right environment, it will grow and produce a harvest of righteousness in the lives of those who respond to its truth. How it happens, no one knows. Just as the farmer knows what the seed can do, so we, who scatter the seed of the word, have the confidence that, given a favourable environment, the word of God will take root and change the lives of those who receive it.

His disciples were to be encouraged. Theirs was the task to do the sowing in the days to come, “Take heart,” said Jesus. “There will be a harvest of new life just as there is a harvest of grain when the farmer sows his seed.”

Again He said, ‘What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when it is planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.’ (Mark 4: 30-32).

Another mystery! We may not get the point of this parable if we do not understand the background to the parable. In ancient Israel, the householder owned two pieces of ground. Once was outside the village where he planted his crop to sustain the family during the year. Around his house he had a small piece of ground, a garden in which he planted herbs for the kitchen. To plant a mustard seed in his herb garden would be foolish because it would encroach on the garden.

Unlike our mustard seed which is relatively big, the mustard seed was as fine as ground pepper. The mustard plant in Israel was a weed which a farmer would not knowingly plant in his garden.

However, in this story a man did plant it in his garden. For what purpose? To give shelter to the birds! Birds were a nuisance to the farmer because they devoured the seed as he scattered it on the ground. Symbolically, birds represented unwelcome people – Gentiles if you will. Yet, the kingdom of God made room for them as well.

What was Jesus saying? God’s kingdom is about mercy. When a man deliberately plants a weed in his garden to provide shade and shelter for birds – the unwanted ones who are a nuisance to him – he has understood the nature of the kingdom. He overrides his own need for the sake of others for whom no one else cares. Such is the kingdom of God!

With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when He was alone with His disciples, He explained everything (Mark 4: 33-34).

True to His intention, Jesus taught the people in parables but explained the meaning to His disciples. Those who had a desire to understand the truth would grasp the meaning of the stories while those who were hangers-on who go away none the wiser. To His disciples was given the honour of deeper truth as they followed and learned from their rabbi.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my Blog site – www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What You Do Is What You Are

Bible Study, , , ,

WHAT YOU DO IS WHAT YOU ARE

“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21.

What a list of horrible things people indulge in! But these are only the tip of the iceberg. They are symptoms of something much deeper and much worse. People are not sinners because they do these things; people do these things because they are sinners. Long before any of these symptoms ever come to the surface, the heart is already rotten to the core.

The sinful human behaviour Paul listed here touches and defiles every part of us – body, soul and spirit. However, in the end all sin is against God, not matter who else we may infect on our mad dash towards self-destruction. King David was aware of this when his adultery with Bathsheba was exposed.

“Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.” Psalm 51:4.

That unbelievers do these things is bad enough, but that believers also engage in this kind of behaviour with the mistaken idea that God will forgive them, is tragic because they have failed to realise that what they do exposes their hearts.

“Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him. Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does right is righteous, just as He is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” 1 John 3:4-8.

Paul’s distress over the Galatians’ acceptance of the Judaizers’ false teaching went much deeper than that they believed they had to be circumcised and keep the law. He knew that to do that was to fall back into the clutches of their old sinful nature which had killed them when they were born because they were born in sin. This time they would ever escape the ravages of sin because they would be denying the work of Jesus and undoing their faith in Him forever.

“It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace.” Hebrews 6:4-6.

This is not about falling into occasional sin. This is about changing the foundation upon which your faith is based. It is either based on what you can do or on what Jesus has done. It cannot be both. Those who fall into temptation have an advocate with God who pleads their case for them.

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” 1 John 2:1-3.

Those who choose to trust in their own works to satisfy God’s righteousness, who step out of grace into works, have no way back. Hence Paul’s warning. “Don’t do it because, if you do, you will have forfeited your standing in grace forever.” It’s as serious as that!

Why would people want to do that? Is it because, in the end, they choose to walk the way of unrighteousness so that they can indulge in their fleshly lusts?

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Greater Than John

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GREATER THAN JOHN

“‘Let me lay it out for you as plainly as I can: No one in history surpasses John the Baptiser, but in the kingdom he prepared for you, the lowliest person is ahead of him. The ordinary and disreputable people who heard John, by being baptised by him into the kingdom, are the clearest evidence; the Pharisees and religious officials have nothing to do with such baptism, wouldn’t think of giving up their place in line to their inferiors.” Luke 7:28-30 (The Message).

What on earth was Jesus talking about? John the Baptist the greatest and yet the least? It doesn’t make sense, does it?

According to Jesus, John was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, not because of the length of his ministry but because of its importance. All the other prophets, so said Peter, “…Who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow.” 1 Peter 1:10b, 11 (NIV), spoke of events that were still far off in the future.

It was John who was privileged to announce and introduce the Messiah to his people, and yet he himself did not witness His ministry or hear His preaching. As soon as Jesus appeared on the scene, he was removed by Herod into a dungeon from which he was never released. He had stood on the brink of the era of the New Covenant but never experienced it for himself.

It must have been very frustrating for John to have been so near and yet so far. Perhaps he had longed to be a part of what Jesus was doing, to be more than his forerunner, even a prominent member of His band of disciples. But it was not to be. John’s work was done, short though it had been, and Jesus graciously acknowledged the value and importance of what he had done.

But, at the same time, He did not overplay John’s role. He was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets but the least in the kingdom Jesus had come to inaugurate. Why?  Because, through Jesus, people could enter and experience what he could only announce.

When the Holy Spirit came in His fullness to continue the work of Jesus, He would take up residence within every believer, making everyone who embraced Jesus as the Son of God and His teaching as His yoke, His dwelling place. It was no longer the privileged few who experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit with them; but all who believed would have Him in them, even the lowliest in man’s eyes.

The high-and-mighty religious ones who thought they were in, were actually out, while the ones they regarded as of no consequence, occupied a more privileged position than they. That’s how it is in God’s kingdom — the world’s value system is reversed. The places of highest honour are reserved for the ones who least expect it. If you think you are important, you are not!

John’s baptism was received by those who welcomed his message and identified with the one he was introducing. Of course, the religious leaders, who thought they knew better, refused to be a part of it. They would not participate in anything that attracted the riff-raff. How tragic that their proud, know-it-all attitude excluded them from the greatest moment in their history and their own personal lives!

What about us? How much have we missed of the grace of Jesus because we think we know better, or because we refuse to humble ourselves and change the way we think. Jesus’ way is open to all, but there are many who miss it because it demands our shedding all our preconceived notions about how it should be.

He said, ‘Follow me.’ That’s all! Are you following? If you are, you will be part of the many who are greater than John the Baptist.