The Revelation That Keeps On Giving (Matthew 16:13-19)

"When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, 'Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?' So they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Simon Peter answered and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus answered and said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not REVEALED this unto you but my Father who is in heaven, and, I also say to you that you are Peter (smallish stone) and on this rock (the revelation that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God) I will BUILD MY CHURCH and the gate of Hades shall not prevail (be victorious) against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven (or will have been bound in heaven) and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven' " (or will have been loosed in heaven).


Clearly, the Father revealed to Peter that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Now, the foundational Truth of Who Jesus is had been made real to Peter. What others had to say about Jesus was incorrect and shows how men, then and now, respond to the Truth without that same revelation and how Jesus builds upon it. Jesus goes on to inform Peter that he was a stone in comparison to the Rock that this revelation would be for righteousness and against sin: so huge it is that the all Hell has to fight with cannot overcome it. People with the revelation of Jesus the Christ are hard to derail, yet, Jesus is not done, He is just beginning to build the spiritual house where He can abide in His fullness.


"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven".  He teaches us what they are and how to use them. Remember, Jesus did nothing unless He saw His Father do so; said nothing unless He heard His Father say so. Binding and loosing in His kingdom are accomplished in no different manner than how Peter was enlightened of the Christ! The Father, and now His glorified Christ, REVEAL how/what to us through the Word of God. The Lord God reveals and, as we use what we has been revealed, He reveals more. Those who receive will bind and loose, in Him, to bring all that He has for us into fruition.

Contentment versus Covetousness

 

It is very important to understand that "the living God gives us richly all things to enjoy" (1 Timothy 6:17). The blessing in this statement is that He does not need to ask us what we need or like- He knows us better than we think we know ourselves! Contentment is born out of faith - a revelation that comes forth from the Lord God that acts as a blueprint of what He wants to do for us. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to cast off restraint in this area if not for a vision given.  Covetousness, on the contrary, is a desire for anything, even in His perfect plan, which leads to the individual doing all he/she can to bring it to pass - to make it happen. Contentment recognizes His voice and believes Him to bring it to pass, enjoying what He has already given.

"Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with the things that you have (spirit, soul and body). For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you' ". (Hebrews 13:5)

When a cake is put together, all the ingredients that make it enjoyable are there and in it. The instructions require a certain amount of time and heat to complete the process successfully. If this is the first time you are trying to make cake, you might look in the oven and say after 10, 30 or 40 minutes, "it looks and smells good, it must be complete!" You pull it out and attempt to eat but it is not right. It is not complete. Covetousness ruined the cake! You wanted it before it was ready! Covetousness is promoted by Satan and allowed by the carnality of the soul. When the individual hits the wall of gracelessness in his/her might and power, hopelessness attempts to steal the vision! BUT, God is merciful to the repentant and, just as a refiner's fire removes impurity from precious metal without ruining the metal, the Lord's process upon the soul who has ears to hear perfectly trains you and provides, without sorrow added, all things (in Him) to enjoy.

 "A disciple is not above His teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher". (Luke 6:40)   Glory to God! If you have ears to hear, you will hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the churches, and it will bear fruit, some 30, some 60 and some 100 fold, in Christ Jesus.

Returning In The Power Of The Holy Spirit (Luke 3:21,22; 4:1-14)

Returning from where in the power of the Holy Spirit? The wilderness. At the age of 30 years, Jesus Christ was baptized by John and the Holy Spirit descended like a dove upon Him. The Father then said, "You are my beloved Son; in You I am well pleased"."  Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. And the devil said to Him, If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread. But Jesus answered him, saying, 'It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.' "


Is it apparent to you that Jesus would have fallen short if He had provided for Himself in that situation? It is not necessary to explain how important eating is to the physical body, yet Jesus seems to understand that for Him, to indulge at that time would have been wrong. Certainly, He would multiply loaves and fishes to feed thousands on at least two occasions.  He was able to turn stones to bread. He was just unwilling. He knew He must continue the fast until His Father released Him from it. Satan, of course, wanted Him to give in to the physical hunger. Jesus did not. He lived by the Word His Father gave Him: the Bread of Life. The concern for how we will be sustained in this life is a powerful mover against the soul. I am convinced that in order walk in the power of the Holy Spirit, we also must learn how to walk just as He walked in matters of sustenance.


"Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, 'All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if you will worship before me, all will be Yours. And Jesus answered and said to him, 'Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.'  "  This "all" that Satan had was authority over the world system. He had it because of Adam's fall: Adam ceded that authority when he obeyed the serpent's temptation instead of the Father's truth. Jesus told us that His authority is from His Father and far exceeded Satan's limited rule. Again, Jesus chose to adhere Himself to the Word of the Father. We see men who seem to rule over vast financial systems, nations, states, municipalities. Men are looking to find righteousness in their actions. Yet Jesus says, "if you want to be great among men, let (that one who wants to be great) him become a servant."


"Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, 'If you are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here, for it is written: He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you, and, in their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.' And Jesus answered and said to him, It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.' " I am still trying to understand how Satan thought this would be a temptation to Jesus after the first and second temptation. What foolishness! But what about us? Are we willing to test God's intent to protect with foolishness and abandon?


After failing to entice Jesus, Satan departed. He would return later. Jesus learned obedience through the temptations. Then, He returned in the power of the Spirit! We will also if we arm ourselves with the same mind. The same Spirit that empowered Jesus in His wilderness will do so in ours as we dwell in the secret place of the Most High!

Let Yourselves Be Cheated?

 

1 Corinthians 6:7


"Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you (brothers in Christ) that you go to law against one another. Why do you not RATHER accept wrong? Why do you not RATHER let yourselves be cheated?"


"You have heard that it was said, 'an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I (Jesus) tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also." Matthew 5:38-40


I think its not hard to understand what is being said here. What's difficult is overcoming all of the learned behaviors that tell us to protect ourselves: punish those who are taking advantage and fight back when threatened. Actually, we (those who have received the Lord's salvation) torment the salvation of our souls when we fight and punish. This discussion reminds that Jesus teaches us, "without Me, you can do nothing". You should not be dismayed if your initial response to an unrighteous act does not measure up to Jesus' instruction in Matthew's gospel. How then do we get from learned behaviors to the righteousness of God in these instances? By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit! If you study, attend church consistently, seek, knock, and ask for His wisdom in faith, nothing doubting, you will surely receive the understanding, awakening you, alerting you, reminding you, empowering you to be a doer of it!


In these things you need that no one teach you. No minister is able to teach you HOW to do these things, just open the discussion and live it! The understanding and empowerment come from the Teacher by the Communicator, the Holy Spirit.

 

We should RATHER because our willful obedience leaves a deposit of Jesus Christ with them and, the Psalmist writes, "I have never seen the righteous forsaken nor his descendants begging bread". Psalm 37:25

We Must Judge, Not Punish

Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, regarding the issue of same-sex relationships, recently said that he would not judge those involved in homosexuality. I agree if by that he means he would not render punishment. Physical harm, malice, prejudice regarding the basic necessities of life, and exclusion from attendance in church would not be a just response by Christians toward these folks. 

I have felt impressed of the Lord that judgement should be understood in two ways: God's righteous judgement toward man and man's unrighteous judgement toward his fellow man. Righteous judgement coming from the One who KNOWS the hearts of men; unrighteous judgement coming from those who "know in part" (1 Corinthians 13:12) and therefore render inefficient and harmful sentences, spiritually speaking. Unrighteous judgement often is a cloak for self-willed self service and bitter envy, not motivated by the One who knows love completely.

Yet, Paul said (1 Corinthians 11:31), "if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged". Do you see the difference between critical assessment of a situation and punishment? "If we would critically assess ourselves, we would not be punished". "But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are SPIRITUALLY DISCERNED. But he who is spiritual judges (assesses) all things, yet he himself is rightly judged(punished) by no one". We in Christ are called to judge (spiritually discern) all things. It is through Spiritual discernment that our steps are rightly ordered: we suppress not the truth and clearly see and understand His invisible attributes, even His eternal power and Godhead (Romans 1:20). If we punish not, assuming our righteous place in Him, those who believe not will have the chance to repent. Those who are outside will be without excuse for they will see the King of Righteousness among His people. 

It's Not About You?

Sounds soooo spiritual. In context, it NEEDS to be more about you so it can be more about others. Saints and lost alike need to see the righteous behaving more like Jesus Christ. We must be willing to go on to completion in Him, who desires to build us up into a spiritual house for His dwelling in His fullness!


Until recently, a baseball pitcher who could effectively battle throughout the entire game, completing it, was worth a lot to a team. From a baseball perspective, he did not have to win as long as he kept his team in the game, but, many times, the pitcher remained in the game because he was overwhelming the opposition. A complete game would give rest to the other pitchers on the team... I would rejoice to see more brethren who are able to punish all disobedience as their obedience is being fulfilled; those who are able to help the team (others) to maturity. If a pitcher has not been able to complete the sixth inning (spiritually speaking) how can he help others to do so?


James 1:2,3 reads, "brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience (perseverance). But let perseverance have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and COMPLETE, lacking nothing".


2 Peter 1:4-11 shows us that "great and precious promises have been given to us" and that through these we "may be partakers of the divine nature". This happens by "adding to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge self control, and to self control perseverance, and to perseverance godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren (useless!) nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ". 
Do we add these things by going to a christian store and downloading the software to our christian souls? We ask of Him, because He is the author and finisher of ALL THESE THINGS! He reveals Himself to us because we ask in faith, nothing doubting, not willing to go back to or stay weak; "becoming COMPLETE" in Him? (2 Corinthians 13:11)

Go to This People and Say...

The Acts of the Apostles 28: 26, 27


"The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, 'Go to this people and say: "Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand; and seeing you will see, and not perceive; For the hearts of this people (the Jewish people in this instance) HAVE GROWN DULL. Their ears are HARD OF HEARING, and their eyes THEY HAVE CLOSED, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them." ' "


The Jewish people were and are God's chosen people: chosen to propagate those who would be the bible story. We know that Jesus Christ was born of a Jewish girl. All the patriarchs were of Jewish lineage. They also experienced His mighty supernatural hand. They were, of all peoples on the earth, best prepared to receive Jesus the Messiah. They thought His kingdom would manifest differently than it did. Instead of immediately wiping out their adversaries, He informed them they should love, bless, pray for and do good to them; He said they must lay down their lives for these "friends". I can only imagine what startling breath Jesus provided to stench of sin of that time. It must have been amazing to see and hear of all the good He did for the Jewish people. Yet they closed their ears, eyes and hearts from Him. We, who have not been born into the Jewish lineage, have been provided for as well- Paul left those in the twenty-eighth chapter to tell the Gentiles of Jesus Christ. The prophetic words that came through Paul will judge us as well.