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Post by Toby Benoit on Mar 8, 2010 14:52:02 GMT 12.75
;D ;D ;D Ya hit the nail on the head! ;D ;D ;D
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Mar 11, 2010 11:10:27 GMT 12.75
I don't know if I will be able to post any sermon notes this week. We will be moving some furniture to the parsonage in Ethel, Ok. We are going to start staying out there on the weekends which would save me from driving 246 miles every Sunday. If I am able to get any studying done, I will try to post one Sunday afternoon or evening.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Mar 11, 2010 16:49:38 GMT 12.75
;D Thanks for the sermon whenever you get to it! ;D
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Post by Paws on Mar 12, 2010 6:25:56 GMT 12.75
Want me to do one? I got a good one I been workin on.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Mar 12, 2010 10:36:52 GMT 12.75
I hope to have one posted Sunday evening after we get in from Oklahoma that is if everything works like I think it sshould.
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Post by Paws on Mar 12, 2010 11:31:55 GMT 12.75
I hope to have one posted Sunday evening after we get in from Oklahoma that is if everything works like I think it sshould. Does that mean no?
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Post by Toby Benoit on Mar 12, 2010 13:36:56 GMT 12.75
Lol, Paws; I figure that meant no. He's skeered you're gonna get it wrong and give me a license to run amock. I can go wild and by next Sunday be able to say..."Sorry, Paws said I could!" ;D Get it to us when ya can Pastor; it's worth waiting on. But Phil; I really would like to read yours too. You thinking on taking to the pulpit???
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Mar 29, 2010 12:25:06 GMT 12.75
I thought I would be able to access the sermon notes that I should have posted last week today. I was able to get to them, but couldn't get online with the laptop to post them for some reason. I even hooked the laptop up to my home connection. I tried e-mailing them to myself, but all I got was some weird boxes, like it was in another language, but none I have ever seen before. The laptop may have to go to the shop, so I may have to rewrite my notes. Sorry for the delay.
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Post by Paws on Mar 29, 2010 13:33:10 GMT 12.75
Pastor if it will help you may write your sermons on here in your work shop. That way , all you need to do is either cut and paste or direct link to whereever you want them to show up. I wish I had done that with my recipes rather than have them locked up in the other hard drive!
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Post by Toby Benoit on Mar 29, 2010 16:19:41 GMT 12.75
Get it to the shop; sounds like you got a bug in there, Freddie.
No big surprise... Arkansas and computer; two words that just can't go well together, lolol!
Get 'em fixed Freddie; we'll wait on ya!
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Mar 29, 2010 21:02:08 GMT 12.75
Pastor if it will help you may write your sermons on here in your work shop. That way , all you need to do is either cut and paste or direct link to whereever you want them to show up. I wish I had done that with my recipes rather than have them locked up in the other hard drive! Thats what I usually do, but I don't have internet access in Ok. So I thought i would write them on the laptop, carry it between locations, then hook laptop to internet here. But I can't get online with laptop for some reason.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Apr 2, 2010 10:06:25 GMT 12.75
Here's the first one of the one I couldn't get to on my laptop. I have the next one ready, I just have to re-type it since I can't get the laptop to connect to the internet. Hopefully I'll have it up before Sunday to catch up.
Matthew 12:41, 42 (King James Version)
41. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here. 42. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.
If you will recall, last time we looked at the beginning of Jesus' response to a request, or demand, from the scribes and Pharisees who were wanting to see a sign or a major miracle from Jesus. He told them that the only sign they would see would be the sign of Jonas, or Jonah. Today, we are going to look further into His response and see what we should learn. I pray that you learn as much as I did when I started studying this passage.
In verse 41 the first thing we need to look at is the phrase the men of Nineveh. Nineveh was a very important city on the banks of the Tigris River in modern day Iraq. This city was the capital of the Assyrian Empire and was a rival of Babylon, which was also in modern day Iraq. In the book of Jonah, Nineveh was mentioned as being a very great city of three days journey. Some biblical scholars have said that this three day journey was broken down in the following manner. Day 1: travel to Nineveh. Day 2: stay in Nineveh. Day 3: travel back home. Other scholars have said that this three day journey was how long it took to walk across the city. I don't know, all I do know for sure is that Nineveh was a large city because in the last part of Jonah it is mentioned that there were sixscore thousand that didn't know their right hand from their left, meaning children. Sixscore thousand means 120,000 children, not counting adults, so as you can see this was a very large place. Some have said that the population was around 600,000 total, while others have said that the city couldn't have held more than 175,000. Whatever the population, you can see that it was a very large city, and when there is a large population base, there is much wickedness. And Nineveh was no exception. Jonah was sent to preach to the city because of their wickedness, and the city repented, for a time. This city was so wicked that it has been said that they would impale their enemies on stakes in front of the city, and hang their enemies heads in the kings garden, minus the bodies of course. They would also torture their enemies- men, women, and even children- by hacking off their ears, noses, and fingers, gouging out their eyes, or tearing off their lips and hands. They reportedly covered the city walls with the skin of their victims. In about 612 B.C. the city was overthrown by the Medes and Chaldeans and ceased to be a city of any importance. Now that we know a little about the history and cruelty of the city of Nineveh, let's get back to our verse. In verse 41 Jesus said the men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it. If you would, I would like you to think about a court for a moment. But not a court that has one judge, but one that had multiple judges, sort of like our Supreme Court. It is possible that Jesus was calling to the people's minds the Sanhedrin Court, which had 71 members and was presided over by the High Priest. What ever the case, Jesus said that the men of Nineveh would rise, or stand, in judgment against Israel and would condemn it. Jesus gives us the reason why the men of Nineveh would do this in the last part of verse 41. It is because they repented at the preaching of Jonah! Jonah preached to the people of Nineveh that unless they repented they would be destroyed in 40 days. The people repented, meaning they turned from their evil ways, and turned to God. The people of Nineveh heard the preaching of Jonah and reacted to it! Yet the people of Israel, as a whole, heard the Gospel straight from the King of Kings and wouldn't hear Him. Folks, Jesus is greater than Jonah in every aspect! Yet the people wouldn't heed Him. Are you like the people of Nineveh or the people of Israel?
In verse 42, Jesus said that the queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it. The queen of the south was known by another name, the Queen of Sheba, which was a country or tribe located to the south of Israel. Biblical scholars differ greatly on the exact location of Sheba. Some say it was the country of Ethiopia, others say it was in modern day Yemen, and still others say it was in Arabia. The people of Sheba, or Sabeans, were mostly a nomadic merchant people, traveling and trading in goods, yet they did have a cruel and vicious nature at times. These people were the ones who destroyed Job's herd of oxen, donkeys, and servants in Job 1:15. They had to have had wealth because the Queen of Sheba is mentioned as coming to Solomon's court to see for herself if the stories of his wisdom were true. Since Solomon was the wealthiest king on earth at that time, it is only logical to think that only those who had wealth, or renown, would have gotten an audience with him. Legend also has it that she was very beautiful because legend states that Solomon fathered one of her children, but I can find no biblical references to that, so I can't say whether it is true or not. Whatever her beauty was, or where her country was located, we know for a fact that she came to see Solomon after she had heard of his wisdom. And Jesus said she would rise in the judgment against the Israelites! Again, this is just like in verse 41, where Jesus said that the men of Nineveh would rise in judgment against the Jews, except this time there is only one in judgment, not a whole group of people. Jesus finished this verse by saying there is one greater than Solomon here. The Israelites were proud to have Solomon in their heritage because he was the wisest human to have ever lived. The Israelites took pride in the fact that he was of the nation of Israel. Yet Jesus, who gave Solomon his wisdom, was among the people right then and right there and they refused to accept Him! Jesus was, and is, wiser than Solomon ever thought of being, yet the religious leaders of that day refused to accept the fact that he was indeed the Son of God! The Queen of Sheba accepted the fact that Solomon was the wisest man on earth, because she had seen evidence of his wisdom, yet the religious leaders refused to accept Jesus as being wiser than Solomon even after they had seen evidence of his wisdom. We have seen time and time again in this study the wisdom of Jesus. Are you like the Queen of Sheba, accepting the fact that Jesus is who He says He is? Or are you like the religious leaders of that time, denying the fact that Jesus is the Son of God?
Before I finish these sermon notes on these verses, I need to make one thing perfectly clear. Neither the men of Nineveh nor the Queen of Sheba will sit in judgment against mankind. They might stand up at the judgment and ask the religious leaders why they didn't accept Jesus as their Saviour, but they won't judge mankind. I believe that the people of Nineveh were saved after hearing Jonah's preaching and the Queen of Sheba was also saved after seeing evidence of Solomon's wisdom. I believe that Solomon gave God all the glory for his wisdom which was a witness unto her and he was able to lead her to the Lord. Only one person will sit in judgment against mankind and that person is Jesus! He alone gave His life as the perfect sacrifice for mankind's sins and He alone has the right to judge mankind. He will sit in judgment against you! Will you hear the words Enter in or Depart from me?
Today we have seen Jesus give two examples of people who heard the Gospel preached and acted upon it. I believe that both of these groups of people accepted Jesus as their personal Saviour. If you have read any of these sermon notes, you have had the Gospel presented unto you. How are you going to react? Are you going to be like the men of Nineveh and repent and turn to Jesus? Are you going to be like the Queen of Sheba and see that Jesus is indeed the Son of God?Or are you going to be like the religious leaders of Jesus' day and refuse to accept the fact that Jesus is who He says He is? You have a choice to make. What is your choice? I pray you make the right one.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Apr 2, 2010 11:11:06 GMT 12.75
The men of nineveh... They were brought to the Lord by Jonah's preaching, but Jonah had no clue JESUS was yet to come. He'd no idea who JESUS was, so how is it that the men of Nineveh will rise up in judgement with Jesus against their generation? I'm cornfused. Same question with the Queen of Sheba. Why would Jesus have her rise in judgement of Isreal when she couldn't have known of Jesus back in her day? Got a minute Pastor?
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Apr 2, 2010 13:51:53 GMT 12.75
Both Jonah and Solomon (who witnessed to the Queen of Sheba) knew about the Lord. They had read prophecy concerning His coming, and they knew Beyond a doubt that He was comning one day. They were also saved men, so how could they have been saved if they didn't know of Jesus? They couldn't! All men throughout history who have been saved have trusted Jesus by faith. Abraham was saved just like I was, by grace through faith. The only difference was he looked forward to Jesus' coming and I look back, but still the same grace and the same salvation.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Apr 2, 2010 16:44:39 GMT 12.75
"They had read prophecy concerning His coming, and they knew Beyond a doubt that He was comning one day." That does it! I see how now; thanks!
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Apr 5, 2010 11:04:44 GMT 12.75
Matthew 12:43-45 (King James Version)
43. When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through the dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44. Then he saith, I will return unto my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worst than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.
If you will recall, we have been studying Jesus’ answer to some of the scribes and Pharisees concerning His performing of a miracle. They wanted Jesus to prove to them that He was indeed the Son of God and Jesus told them that the only miracle that they would see would be the sign of Jonas, or Jonah. If you recall, we also looked at the fact that the men of Nineveh and the Queen of Sheba would be able to point their fingers at the people of that day and ask them why they didn’t accept Jesus as their Saviour. Today we are going to look at the final part of Jesus’ answer and hopefully learn what He would have us to learn so that we may be better servants for Him.
In verse 43 the first thing we need to look at is the phrase When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man. This unclean spirit that Jesus is speaking of is a demon. Before we go any further, I need to point out the fact that Jesus does not name this demon, or tell us his powers, just that it is a demon. This demon could have just had the power to make a person not to be able to speak, or blind, or whatever. The phrase gone out of is essentially speaking of this demon being cast out or forcibly removed from an individual. The word man is speaking of a general individual, not a specific person. The next thing we need to look at is the phrase he walketh through the dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none which is found in the last part of verse 43. The word he is referring to the demon who has been forcibly removed from a person. This demon goes through the dry places meaning a place that has no water, like a desert, looking for peace, or a place to rest, and not finding any. To better understand what Jesus is saying, we need to think on the general area that Jesus was conducting His personal ministry in. The majority of Jesus personal ministry was in the area surrounding the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River valley. It was a fertile place, yet not very far from this location there was a desert region. Being on the edge of a desert, water was sometimes scarce, making certain places dry. When a person goes through a area that has no water, that person will have no peace of mind or rest. They are always thinking about where they will get their next drink of cool refreshing water. They don’t have peace of mind! And when a person doesn’t have peace of mind, they don’t have rest. If you will be honest with yourself, you will admit that this has happened in your life at some point. It may have been something that was on your mind, forcing you to focus your thoughts on it and not allowing you to have peace of mind that we all desire. This is what Jesus is referring to, except He is using a demon that has been cast out as His example.
In verse 44, the phrase Then he saith is speaking of the demon that has been cast out talking to himself. We have all done this, telling ourselves something, either in our mind or out loud. This demon made a decision and said that he would go back to the house from whence he came out. The word house is referring to the unwilling host of a demon. In other words, he is making the decision that he would go back to the person from which he was forcibly removed and repossess that person. When he gets back to the person that he had previously possessed, this demon finds that the house, or person that was previously possessed, is empty, swept clean, and decorated, or garnished.
In verse 45, the demon, signified by the word he, goes and gets 7 other spirits, or demons, for a total of 8, and moves back into the host body. Each of these other demons are more wicked than the first and after they move in, the host, shown by the word man, is worse off than he was before when he had just one demon possessing him. Let’s put this in an example that we might better understand. Let’s say you were renting a house, and had been kicked out for non-payment of the agreed upon rent. You wandered around for a day or so, looking for a place to stay, yet couldn’t find any suitable place, therefore you had no peace of mind. You made the decision to go back to your former place of residence, the one you had been kicked out of, and found this house empty, cleaned up, and decorated, ready for the next tenant to move in. The owner is no where around or not paying attention. You then go and get 7 more people, and move back into this rented house. Each of these other 7 people are more evil than you are and each one is very destructive. Wouldn’t this house be worse off than before when it had just one tenant? YES! This is the same example Jesus used except He used the example of demon possession while I used the example of someone who rented a house. In the last part of verse 45 Jesus said Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. I had to think on this for a while to get the understanding of what Jesus was speaking about, and I’m not sure I can put it into words, but I’ll try. Think, if you will, of different doctrines. There are a lot of different things in this world that people want you to believe, things like baptism will save you and works for salvation. And each of these are false! If you believe one false doctrine, it is very easy for other false doctrine to creep in. Folks that is how one major religion got it’s start, by believing one false doctrine. This religion started believing that baptism would save you. They later got the bright idea that since baptism saved you, then infants should be baptized, so that they would be saved. After that it was easy for other falsehoods to get in. Today this religion reaches over ¼ of the people on the earth, and is teaching major falsehoods. And it all started with believing one false doctrine! This is what Jesus was telling the scribes and Pharisees that they were doing. They had started believing in a perverted version of one of God’s laws, and had gotten so far away from the truth that they were leading a lot of people down the road to destruction. And the same thing is still going on today! People are teaching falsehoods, like works for salvation and baptism for salvation, and are leading countless others down the road to ruin. Are you believing and teaching falsehoods?
Today we have seen Jesus give a short example of how false teachings can lead a person to ruin. The only way to avoid false teachings is by reading and studying your Bible, and praying about it. The Holy Spirit will convict you of the truth if you will only let Him. Are you letting the Holy Spirit convict you of the truth? Are you studying your Bible and praying about it? A man can be wrong, but the Holy Spirit never is. What are you believing?
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Post by Toby Benoit on Apr 5, 2010 11:36:08 GMT 12.75
"In the last part of verse 45 Jesus said Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. I had to think on this for a while to get the understanding of what Jesus was speaking about, and I’m not sure I can put it into words, but I’ll try. Think, if you will, of different doctrines."
It's the last part of verse 45 that had me confued and I'm still not sure I understand who Jesus was speaing of. Ya see, He spoke of, "this generation." Was he talking about them folks that didn't believe whilst he was there among them?
Maybe the folks that was led astray of Faith by the pharisees etc. until He showed up to tell them the strraight of it and then go on and fulfill the prophecy and allow us all to be saved.
From His lifetime forward we've had an out. A pretty big one also; we've not only heard prophecy of His coming, but know of it first hand now. From that generation forward we can avoid the lifestyle described in 13:43-45.
Reckon he mighta meant something like that Pastor? I don't think He was describing Catholics on accounta they hadn't started up yet.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Apr 5, 2010 12:43:32 GMT 12.75
"In the last part of verse 45 Jesus said Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. I had to think on this for a while to get the understanding of what Jesus was speaking about, and I’m not sure I can put it into words, but I’ll try. Think, if you will, of different doctrines." It's the last part of verse 45 that had me confued and I'm still not sure I understand who Jesus was speaing of. Ya see, He spoke of, "this generation." Was he talking about them folks that didn't believe whilst he was there among them? Yes and future generations too. What about all the ones who have been led astray by other teachings since? People of all times have had an oppurtunity to be saved just some have availed them of this free gift and some have rejected it. I didn't mention any religion by name, but didn't Jesus have the power to know the future? He KNOWS who is teaching the Gospel today and who isn't and He knew then who would be teaching falsehoods in the future.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Apr 19, 2010 11:20:08 GMT 12.75
Matthew 12: 46-50 (King James Version)
46. While He yet talked to the people, behold, His mother and His brethren stood without, desiring to speak with Him. 47. Then one said unto Him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. 48. But he answered and said unto him that told Him, Who is my mother? And who are my brethren? 49. And He stretched forth His hand toward His disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! 50. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
We have been looking at Jesus’ response to some of the scribes and Pharisees accusations that Jesus was casting out demons by the power of Satan so by their reasoning Jesus wasn’t of God but of Satan. Jesus refuted their claim totally and completely and even used the example of a demon being cast out of a person then returning to prove His point. Today we are going to look at what Matthew records next and see what the Lord would have us to learn to be better servants for Him.
In verse 46 Matthew wrote while He yet talked to the people. This short phrase tells me that this happened right after Jesus’ response to the scribes and Pharisees accusations that He was using the power of Satan to cast out demons. The scribes and Pharisees were doing their best to discredit Jesus and His ministry, but Jesus answered them with clear and concise logic. As Jesus was finishing His response, this incident that we are going to look at happened. The next thing Matthew tells us is that His mother and brethren stood without, desiring to speak with Him. I noticed several things in just this short verse that need to be pointed out. The first thing I want to point out is who was there. It was His mother (Mary) and His brothers! Notice that His earthly father (Joseph) wasn’t there. Now I don’t know if Joseph was dead, which was entirely possible, or if he just wasn’t in attendance. To the best of my knowledge the Bible doesn’t mention Joseph after Jesus went to the Temple when He was about 12 years old, which is recorded in Luke 2. So it is quite possible that Joseph was dead and that Jesus’ brothers were taking care of their mother like the Law in the Old Testament told them to do. The next thing I want us to notice in this verse is that Jesus had earthly brothers. A lot of people want to think that Jesus was an only child, but Mary and Joseph had more children after Jesus. In Mark 6:3, it is recorded that Jesus had at least 4 brothers, James, Joses, Juda, and Simon. Juda, or Jude, was probably the author of the book of Jude. Mark 6:3 also mentions that Jesus had sisters but it doesn’t mention them by name or how many there were. In the last part of this verse Matthew wrote that they stood without, desiring to speak with Him. This part of the verse tells me two things. First, there were a lot of people around Jesus. The word without could mean either outside of a house or building, or it could man that they were outside of a group of people. Either way, there was a lot of people around. Mary and His brothers could have gotten close to Jesus and spoke with Him if there wasn’t. Secondly, Mary and His brothers desired, or wanted to, speak with Jesus. We have no record of what Mary wanted to talk to Jesus about, it could have been anything. But it had to have been important for Jesus’ brothers to have taken the time to go and see Him. Remember, during that time period it was hard to earn a living, meaning that a day’s wages were very minimal, and people had to work constantly to survive. Therefore whatever Mary needed to speak with Jesus about had to be very important. Also keep in mind that Jesus’ family, other than Mary, didn’t believe that He was the Messiah. His brothers didn’t believe until after His death. Therefore whatever they had to speak with Jesus had to have been important, at least in their minds, because they wouldn’t have taken off of work to go see Him if it wasn’t.
In verse 47, Matthew writes Then one said unto Him, behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. The word one means a single person, probably a messenger of some sort. This person stood outside of the main group or house and when someone wanted to speak with a person inside, they would tell him and he would deliver the message. Then the person inside could decide if they wanted to speak with the person on the outside or not. This person was probably a servant of one of the Sadducees or the owner of the house. I think if it had been one of the disciples, Matthew would have recorded that person by name. But since he didn’t name who that person was, I think it was a servant.
In verse 48 Jesus responds to the one who told Him that Mary and His brothers were standing outside waiting to speak with Him. He said Who is my mother? And who are my brethren? This answer must have seemed strange to the person Jesus was addressing, because it would seem like Jesus didn’t know who His own family was. Folks, I assure you, Jesus knew who Mary was. He had been breast-fed when He was an infant by Mary for about 2 years due to the fact that they didn’t have baby bottles in those days. He wouldn’t have forgotten His mother! He also played games with His brothers while growing up, the sort of games that kids played. He wouldn’t have forgotten who His brothers were! So why did He give an answer like this? The answer is given in verse 50.
In verse 49 Matthew records that Jesus stretched forth His hand toward His disciples and said Behold my mother and my brethren! In other words Jesus reached toward His disciples, who were probably all together in one group, and said that this was His family. This too might have seemed strange, considering that none of His disciples had given birth to Him, or that none of them had played games with Him while He was a child. None of the disciples were actually kin to Jesus, yet He said that they were His family. Why? Again, the answer is given in verse 50.
In verse 50 Jesus said, For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, my sister, and my mother. There are several things I need to point out in this verse so please bear with me. First, Jesus said whosoever. This is a term that means anyone and everyone. We would use the term “whoever” in today’s language. Next, Jesus said shall do. This is the action of the verse and refers to something that a person has to do. What is that thing that a person has to do? The will of the Father! We have looked at what the will of the Father is in previous studies, but it never hurts to go over it again. Peter wrote in II Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is long suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The will of the Father is that all should come to repentance! Folks, God wants every person to accept Jesus as their personal Saviour, but He gives each one of us a free choice. That choice is either to accept Him or reject Him. And God will abide by your choice. He wants a willing servant, not one that serves Him because he is forced to. Jesus next identified who His Father was. It is God! This is seen by the phrase which is in heaven. Jesus didn’t want anyone to get confused about who He was speaking about when He said my Father. He didn’t want anyone to think that He was speaking about Joseph when in fact He was speaking about God. Finally in the last part of verse 50 Jesus said the same is my brother, my sister, and my mother. The words the same refers back to whoever do the will of the Father. In other words, Jesus is saying that whoever comes to repentance is His brother, sister, and mother. We can take it a step further and say that Jesus said that whoever is saved, or comes to repentance, is His family. Paul preached in the 8th chapter of Romans of the spirit of adoption. When a person is saved, they are adopted into the family of God. It is like they were actually born into the family, with all the rights and privileges that pertains to that family. When I was saved, I became a child of God, therefore I am a brother to Jesus. Glory Hallelujah! I am a child of God because of my repentance of my sins and my accepting Jesus as my Saviour. Are you a child of God? I also found it interesting the manner in which Jesus listed those of His family. He listed siblings first, then His mother. Notice He didn’t list a father. That is because God is His Father and no one can be in that position other than God. Also Jesus listed siblings before His mother. First, Jesus counted being a brother or sister to Him as being of more importance than a mother. Being considered a brother or sister to Jesus is of utmost importance. Secondly, this tells me that Mary, while being blessed above all women to bear Jesus in the womb, wasn’t as special as some say. She was a normal woman who had to trust Jesus as her Saviour just like everyone else. She had to repent of her sins just like I did, or just like any other person who has ever been saved. One other thing I need to point out. When a person becomes a child of God, or as some may say, a member of the family of God, they are that way for all eternity. The same concept is in a normal family. If you have a son or daughter, and that child does something that makes you ashamed, are they still your child? YES! I have done things in the past that if my parents knew what I had done they would have been ashamed to have called me their son. Yet I am still their son. The family of God is the same way! When I accepted Jesus as my Saviour, I became a child of God throughout all eternity and nothing can change that fact. No matter what I do, I am still a part of the family of God. Now this doesn’t say that I won’t be disciplined for the things I do, just like you would discipline your child, but I am still part of God’s family.
Today we have seen a very important teaching in the Bible. It is that when you are saved, you are a child of God, a brother or sister unto Jesus, and that you are a child of His for all eternity. Are you part of the family of God? To become a member of the family of God you have to accept Jesus as your personal Saviour. Have you accepted Him as your Saviour? Have you repented of your sins and by faith turned unto Him? If so, then live like it. Live your life so that it reflects the fact that you are a child of God. If you aren’t a member of God’s family, then I urge you to turn to Him before it is too late, repenting of your sins and by faith trusting in Him to save you for all eternity.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Apr 22, 2010 11:16:43 GMT 12.75
;D Man, you got long winded on this one! Lol, I appreciate it brother! I read ahead on it and been percolating on it a bit and got it all figured out now. Looking forward to next weeks! Sorry I been so long getting around to posting on it, but I been some kinda sicker'n a dog! I'm on the mend again, but the Lord shore been keeping me humble lately!
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