BEWARE : SAME OLD TEMPTATIONS
When the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, chief priests and elders in the temple harassed Jesus in His ministry of bringing salvation to the world, the devil used the same old temptations on Jesus as he did in the wilderness. (Matthew 4:5-7) One of the ways was to tempt Jesus to perform signs for them in His ministry, hoping that He would not be able to do miracles and they could say that He was a fake. (Matthew 12:38-42) In the devil's temptation in His mind in the wilderness, the devil tempted Jesus to jump from a high structure to prove that God would save Him. Jesus answered the devil that He should not tempt God. The religious and political leaders did the same thing several times later, told Jesus to give them a sign so that they would believe in Him, using the same temptation that the devil had used on Jesus in the wilderness.
His accusers followed Jesus and His disciples around, looking for opportunities to trap Him into doing something that would cause them to accuse Him of being a law breaker so that they could tell the authorities. They even asked Jesus why His disciples did not wash their hands before eating, breaking Jewish traditions. Jesus put the hypocrisy right back on them by asking them why they broke their own traditions by refusing to honor their parents when their parents asked for help with finances. Jesus revealed that they had told their parents that the money that they might have to help their parents they gave to Me. He called them hypocrites for claiming that their money was dedicated to Me instead of available to help their parents. (Matthew 15:1-9) He told them that they only honored Me with lip-servce but their hearts were far from Me. He said that their worship of Me was worthless and their doctrines were human doctrines. (Isaiah 2:13) They were judging the disciples based on man-made doctrines.
It was in that setting that Jesus called His followers to Him and taught them that it's not what goes in a person's stomach that defiles the person, but it's what comes out of the mouth of a person that defiles the person. He said that what goes into the stomach is discharged into the sewer but what comes out of the mouth of a person comes from his heart and makes the person unclean. (Matthew 15:12-29) He said the Pharisees were the blind leading the blind.
After Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes, the political and religious leaders asked to be shown another sign from heaven. This was a repeat of when the devil told Jesus in the wilderness to change a rock into bread as a sign. (Matthew 4;1-4) Jesus told the Pharisees and Sadducees that they were smart enough to know if the sky is red at night that it will be nice the next day, and they knew that if the sky is overcast that it will be stormy. He told them that they needed to recognize the sign of Jonah. He left them standing there wondering what He meant. He was talking about the coming of My kingdom of heaven into the earth. He had told them that evil people ask for signs, indicating the devil was again behind the request for signs from heaven. (Matthew 16:1-4)
It was because of the harassment from the Jewish religious and political leaders that Jesus told His followers to BEWARE of the yeast of the Pharisees, Sadducees, the scribes, the chief priests and the elders in the temple. His followers finally understood that Jesus was telling them to beware of the words of the religious and political leaders because they were evil, planning in their minds how to rid the earth of the ministry of Jesus. (Matthew 16:5-13)
Later while Jesus was involved in healing people, some politicians approached Him and questioned Him about divorce, in order to divert His attention from healing the sick. They asked Him if it's lawful to divorce under any pretext whatever? Jesus asked them if they had not read that I had made male and female and that a man must leave his parents and cleave to his wife because they become one flesh. He said that if I had united them that people must not divide them. The Pharisees told Him that Moses gave them a paper of divorce. Jesus told them that if a man divorces His wife and marries another woman that he is guilty of adultery. (Matthew 19:1-9)
Over and over again, the religious and political leaders interrupted Jesus in His ministry of healing, casting out demons and teaching on My kingdom of heaven soon coming into the earth. They were determined to find enough evidence that would be sufficient to arrest Him according to their religious and political laws. Their plans were to see that He was arrested, tried and crucified. Jesus Christ was a threat to their kingdom of domination of people that they had for years for themselves.
Jesus continued to teach about My kingdom and how wonderful if was going to be when My children inherited My kingdom while they live in the earth. It was still a mystery to everyone how it would happen. Some people thought it would happen with Jesus coming back to earth and setting up a visible kingdom in Jerusalem with splendor and majesty so that Israel would be the world leader. (Acts 1:6) Jesus had told in His teachings that it would not be in observation but it would be like the wind, seeing the results of it without seeing it visually.
When His prophesy was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, it was more glorious than anyone imagined. It was accompanied by signs and wonders, with My children speaking and praying in heavenly languages, winds from heaven and fire which were the presence of My angels, as John the Baptist and Jesus had prophesied. (Acts 2:1-4) The people who had waited, as Jesus commanded, were empowered with My Holy Spirit, afterward being able to speak in My behalf about My love and My power.(Acts 2:14-36) The world was changed that day and is still being changed as My children are born of My Spirit and baptized in My Holy Spirit as My kingdom comes inside of them making them heirs of My kingdom while they live in the earth. They are empowered to do My will in the earth as it is in heaven.
The glory of My kingdom coming into the world in the lives of those who seek Me, seek My kingdom and seek My righteousness continues, as prophesied. My obedient children become spiritual people in human bodies instead of mere humans with limitations. They hear My voice in their thoughts and those who obey My voice have heaven on earth. It's My pleasure to give My kingdom to all of My children. That glorious day came and is still coming in the lives of My children who seek Me, seek My kingdom and seek My righteousness.
Your Generous, Gracious, Loving Father.
No comments:
Post a Comment