Mathew 23:25-28
WOE TO YOU,SCRIBES AND PHARISEES, HYPOCRITES!
BECAUSE YOU CLEAN THE OUTSIDE OF THE CUP AND THE DISH,
BUT WITHIN THEY ARE FULL OF ROBBERY AND UNCLEANNESS.
THOU BLIND PHARISEE! CLEAN FIRST THE INSIDE OF THE CUP AND OF THE DISH,
THAT THE OUTSIDE TOO MAY BE CLEAN.
WOE TO YOU, SCIBES AND PHARISEES, HYPOCRITES!
BECAUSE YOU ARE WHITED SEPULCHRES, WHICH OUTWARDLY APPEAR TO
MEN BEATIFUL, BUT WITHIN ARE FULL OF DEAD MEN'S BONES
AND OF ALL UNCLEANESS.
SO YOU OUTWARDLY APPEAR JUST TO MEN,
BUT WITHIN YOU ARE FULL OF HYPOCRISY AND INIQUITY.
Mathew 23:25-28
If you have noticed I write more from the old testament, than from the new testament.
It is because when I read from the new testament, agony and pain arise in me. My veins get full of fire. My soul starts to crumble...and one shout, only one shout comes out.
It is the kind of scream no one likes to hear. The one of a soul in dispair.
I read these words and I one intense idea comes to my mind...forget all, forget about cooking and teaching, and friends, JUST GO AND DROP BEFORE THE LORD OF ALL.
GO FAST MY SOUL, GO FAST.
Perhaps you may find mercy and grace.
Go and drop at His feet and beg for a new heart.
All of the above was not my intention to write upon... I know that when I speak like this people get uneasy. Theology discussions easily spring forth from words such as: "Perhaps you will find mercy..."
So never mind. Most likely you have never experienced the wrath of God. I will thus not intend to clear up your theology. Let God be God, and may He open your eyes one day.
(will probably be a terrifying day, that day...but may He do it anyway. For out of the Fear of the Lord, wisdom springs forth)
Do you see why I do not write from the New Testament? What did I want to talk about?
Oh, yes, THE strategy.
THE strategy is to BE. So what happens with the DOING?
We have gotten lost so much in the past...I hear ourselves saying. "Do not be legalistic" or " Do not be a pharisse, Jesus hated such people." And with such a banner we have become slack in our ACTS. We DO most things a non-believer does under such a banner.
Jesus did not say: "SIN, that way you will not be a hypocrite."
NO His message was clear: REPENT
and : GET CLEANED IN THE INSIDE.
A good definition for religious or legalistic is:
DOING the right things, with the wrong heart.
So we are to aim to GET the right heart, so when we DO the right things we will not be called hypocrites by God.
These verses do NOT give us a license to sin. To become slack. To walk in lust and deception and envy.
Do you know what I mean? I am sure you do.
We watch hours and hours of tv. Filling our minds with all kind of sinful acts. Should I go ant tell you, "I think that program is not right consider turning your tv off" what will your reaction most likely be?
Some of my "favorite" escuses:
- Jesus prayed that we should be kept from evil but not taken away from this world.
- Jesus walked with sinners (I omit the fact that He did not sin)
- how am I to reach people if I do not know what is going on in the world?
strange, but the fact is that after a doze of tv, we open our Bibles and...nothing happens!
What a huge mistery!!!
We indulge in sin, we allow our souls to have at least a taste of lust and hate. And when we go to bed we open our Bibles and expect the HOLY OF HOLIES to manifest His love and wisdom to us.
Are we crazy or what?
"But Bea, if we turn the tv off and throw away some of our cd's...well, we will soon end up looking like some kind of freaks. And people will not like us, and they will not want to come to church."
Clever how we can twist things around, so much.
We want churches full.
Well there is only one strategy that will work.
We must become freaks. We must be fools. We must DO things God's way.
If we are not willing to be freaks. If we are not willing to turn from sin, well we will never be able to carry God's glory. Because His presence will not be placed upon filthy containers.
And without His glory...all other strategies, no matter how well planned, how much prayed upon, how expensive they may be...they will be in vain. They may draw a crowd. But no lives will be changed, really changed.
We will only be producing more hypocrites. Like Jesus said:
WOE TO YOU, SCRIBES AND PHARISEES,HYPOCRITES!
BECAUESE YOU TRAVERSE SEA AND LAND TO MAKE ONE CONVERT;
AND WHEN HE HAS BECOME ONE,
YOU MAKE HIM TWOFOLD MORE A SON OF HELL THAN YOURSELVES.
Mathew 23:25-28
Are we really willing to pay the price?
Will we really accept God as God in our lives?
Will we let Him crush us, an make us the laughing stock of human kind?
Will we let His fire clean us from the inside?
Will we turn off the tv, and read our Bibles more?
or will we just continue talking on mercy and grace, without using them to turn from sin?
will we keep doing and doing without the right heart?
will we close our ears, will we chose to be blind?
will we ignore the fact that Jesus was the biggest fool of all, the laughing stock of human kind...for you and I?
BECAUSE YOU CLEAN THE OUTSIDE OF THE CUP AND THE DISH,
BUT WITHIN THEY ARE FULL OF ROBBERY AND UNCLEANNESS.
THOU BLIND PHARISEE! CLEAN FIRST THE INSIDE OF THE CUP AND OF THE DISH,
THAT THE OUTSIDE TOO MAY BE CLEAN.
WOE TO YOU, SCIBES AND PHARISEES, HYPOCRITES!
BECAUSE YOU ARE WHITED SEPULCHRES, WHICH OUTWARDLY APPEAR TO
MEN BEATIFUL, BUT WITHIN ARE FULL OF DEAD MEN'S BONES
AND OF ALL UNCLEANESS.
SO YOU OUTWARDLY APPEAR JUST TO MEN,
BUT WITHIN YOU ARE FULL OF HYPOCRISY AND INIQUITY.
Mathew 23:25-28
If you have noticed I write more from the old testament, than from the new testament.
It is because when I read from the new testament, agony and pain arise in me. My veins get full of fire. My soul starts to crumble...and one shout, only one shout comes out.
It is the kind of scream no one likes to hear. The one of a soul in dispair.
I read these words and I one intense idea comes to my mind...forget all, forget about cooking and teaching, and friends, JUST GO AND DROP BEFORE THE LORD OF ALL.
GO FAST MY SOUL, GO FAST.
Perhaps you may find mercy and grace.
Go and drop at His feet and beg for a new heart.
All of the above was not my intention to write upon... I know that when I speak like this people get uneasy. Theology discussions easily spring forth from words such as: "Perhaps you will find mercy..."
So never mind. Most likely you have never experienced the wrath of God. I will thus not intend to clear up your theology. Let God be God, and may He open your eyes one day.
(will probably be a terrifying day, that day...but may He do it anyway. For out of the Fear of the Lord, wisdom springs forth)
Do you see why I do not write from the New Testament? What did I want to talk about?
Oh, yes, THE strategy.
THE strategy is to BE. So what happens with the DOING?
We have gotten lost so much in the past...I hear ourselves saying. "Do not be legalistic" or " Do not be a pharisse, Jesus hated such people." And with such a banner we have become slack in our ACTS. We DO most things a non-believer does under such a banner.
Jesus did not say: "SIN, that way you will not be a hypocrite."
NO His message was clear: REPENT
and : GET CLEANED IN THE INSIDE.
A good definition for religious or legalistic is:
DOING the right things, with the wrong heart.
So we are to aim to GET the right heart, so when we DO the right things we will not be called hypocrites by God.
These verses do NOT give us a license to sin. To become slack. To walk in lust and deception and envy.
Do you know what I mean? I am sure you do.
We watch hours and hours of tv. Filling our minds with all kind of sinful acts. Should I go ant tell you, "I think that program is not right consider turning your tv off" what will your reaction most likely be?
Some of my "favorite" escuses:
- Jesus prayed that we should be kept from evil but not taken away from this world.
- Jesus walked with sinners (I omit the fact that He did not sin)
- how am I to reach people if I do not know what is going on in the world?
strange, but the fact is that after a doze of tv, we open our Bibles and...nothing happens!
What a huge mistery!!!
We indulge in sin, we allow our souls to have at least a taste of lust and hate. And when we go to bed we open our Bibles and expect the HOLY OF HOLIES to manifest His love and wisdom to us.
Are we crazy or what?
"But Bea, if we turn the tv off and throw away some of our cd's...well, we will soon end up looking like some kind of freaks. And people will not like us, and they will not want to come to church."
Clever how we can twist things around, so much.
We want churches full.
Well there is only one strategy that will work.
We must become freaks. We must be fools. We must DO things God's way.
If we are not willing to be freaks. If we are not willing to turn from sin, well we will never be able to carry God's glory. Because His presence will not be placed upon filthy containers.
And without His glory...all other strategies, no matter how well planned, how much prayed upon, how expensive they may be...they will be in vain. They may draw a crowd. But no lives will be changed, really changed.
We will only be producing more hypocrites. Like Jesus said:
WOE TO YOU, SCRIBES AND PHARISEES,HYPOCRITES!
BECAUESE YOU TRAVERSE SEA AND LAND TO MAKE ONE CONVERT;
AND WHEN HE HAS BECOME ONE,
YOU MAKE HIM TWOFOLD MORE A SON OF HELL THAN YOURSELVES.
Mathew 23:25-28
Are we really willing to pay the price?
Will we really accept God as God in our lives?
Will we let Him crush us, an make us the laughing stock of human kind?
Will we let His fire clean us from the inside?
Will we turn off the tv, and read our Bibles more?
or will we just continue talking on mercy and grace, without using them to turn from sin?
will we keep doing and doing without the right heart?
will we close our ears, will we chose to be blind?
will we ignore the fact that Jesus was the biggest fool of all, the laughing stock of human kind...for you and I?
posted by thisfool @ 6:38 AM
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