Spiritual Truth Awakening

Chapter 11: The Lifestyle of Jesus

Luke 7:17 NIV this news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

Luke 7:20 & 22 When the men came to Jesus, they said, "John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, 'are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?'" so he replied to the messengers, "go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

Luke 7:24-30 NIV after John's messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "what did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive clothes and indulge in luxury are in palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: "'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.' I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." (all the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus' words, acknowledged that God's way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the pharisees and experts in the law rejected God's purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.)

The Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law rejected John the Baptist, and in doing so rejected Gods purpose for their lives. God is a God of freedom. He allows us to choose what path we will follow during the course of our life, his plan, or our own plan.

God had a plan for the Pharisees, but they rejected it, so God would give their work to someone else, Jesus' disciples and his followers. These were unlearned men and women, fishermen, laborers, tax collectors, and prostitutes.

God gave the work and that the Pharisees and the teachers of the law should have been doing, to the common people, and these people will earn the rewards for that work.

God does not force anyone to believe his word. Even though God knows what we will do before we do it, this in no way violates our freedom of choice.

It is similar to a parent who knows that one child will behave when they are away, and another child will get into mischief. Just because a parent knows that one child is inclined to be bad when left alone, and another child good, this in no way detracts from the fact that it is the child's own choice do whatever he or she desires while left unattended.

We have the same situation today as was in Jesus day. Many of our priests, pastors, and Bible college professors, are neglecting to do their jobs. They are not studying and then teaching the people the truth from Gods word, so God is finding other people to complete his work.

This is not to say that there are no pastors that are doing Gods work, but you have to search to find them. Many are teaching the social gospel of humanism, and reject repentance from sin, and salvation through the shed blood of Christ. They also fail to teach about prophecy, because they do not believe God's word.

Luke 7:31-32 NIV "to what, then, can I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each other: "'we played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not cry.'

Christ compared the religious leaders, and all of the people who rejected both Jesus and Johns message, to children in the market place, who were not satisfied no matter what type of music was being played.

Luke 7:33-35 NIV for John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'he has a demon.' the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ' here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." 'But wisdom is proved right by all her children."

John the Baptist was the dirge, the mourning song. John denied himself all of the physical pleasures in life.

Jesus was the flute, Jesus denied himself of nothing that was not specifically mentioned in the scriptures as being a sin.

Jesus took freedom to the very limits, yet without sinning. Jesus knew exactly how much he could eat, without being a glutton, he knew exactly how much he could drink, without being drunk, he knew exactly how much he could touch or hold a woman, without being immoral.

While John the Baptist was specifically sent to the Pharisees and the religious leaders, Jesus was the minister to the common people, for he lived like they did, yet without sin. The life style of Jesus, and the life style of John, were 180 degrees apart, Jesus was the only perfect man to ever live, and John was the closest to perfection in the flesh.

Both men were doing the will of God for their lives, yet their life styles were vastly different. John lived in the wilderness with a group of stoics, while Jesus lived in the city, with the common people. John never partied, never touched a drop of wine, or ate a steak, during his entire life. Jesus it seems, was always attending a feast.

Luke 5:27-32 NIV after this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "follow me," Jesus said to him, and levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, " why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and 'sinners'?" Jesus answered them, "it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Jesus had a sense of humor, he was toying with the Pharisees, yet telling them the truth at the same time, but they were too dull to understand it. They thought they were perfect, because of their outward appearance, just like some do today. Matthew elaborates on this subject in his account of this same feast.

Matthew 9:12-13 NIV on hearing this, Jesus said, "it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' for I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Jesus, quoting from the scriptures, told the Pharisees that God desired mercy and not sacrifice. The pharisees were meticulous in the keeping of the ceremonial law, and their traditions, but their hearts were evil. They thought they were perfect, and looked down on everyone else. They were unforgiving, unmerciful, and greedy for wealth. Jesus was telling them that what God wants is a pure heart, not an outward expression of piety. The Pharisees came to Jesus and asked him why his followers did not observe their traditions.

Matthew 15:2-6 NIV "why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" Jesus replied, "and why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, 'honor your father and mother' and ' anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.' but you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ' whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is a gift devoted to God,' he is not to 'honor his father ' with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.

The Pharisees, had a tradition that everything they had was devoted to God, therefore they could not give anything away, even to help their aged parents who were in need.

They did this, not out of love for God, but out of greed, so no one, not even their own family could ask them for financial assistance.

They were like the people today who declare their house to be a church, to avoid paying taxes to the government. These people do not do this out of love for God, but out of love for money.

Matthew 15:7-10 NIV you hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: "'these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' " Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "listen and understand.

Much of the church world today, is exactly like this, full of the traditions of men, but ignoring the word of God.

Matthew 15:11-14 what goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him' unclean.'" then the disciples came to him and asked, "do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?" He replied, "every plant that my heavenly father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."

Jesus said of the Pharisees in his day, that they were the blind leading the blind, and we have returned to the same condition today in most of the church world.

Matthew 15:15-20 Peter said, "explain the parable to us." "are you still so dull?" Jesus asked them. "don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' for out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.'"

Jesus taught that it is not what you eat or drink that is important, but what you think, what you say, and what you do.

The Gospel of Mark also recorded this incident, and he adds a few explanatory remarks.

Mark 7:17-23 NIV after he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. "are you so dull?" He asked. "don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him ' unclean'? For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (in saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.") He went on: "what comes out of a man is what makes him' unclean.' for from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.'"

While Jesus was liberal in his actions concerning obeying the letter of the law, he introduced a radical new concept concerning the definition of sin, and the Spirit of the law. This concept was not really new, as it was understood by the prophets of old, and by Enoch before the flood, but it was new to the Pharisees and the church world of Jesus time, because it had been lost for so long.

Matthew 5:17-19 NIV "do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus teaches in the verse above that errors in doctrine would not prevent a person from being saved, what it would do is reduce their rewards. Many people from the traditional and fundamentalist churches teach that no one from what they call a "cult," can be saved because they have bad doctrine. The people in the so called "cults," do the same thing and teach that no one in the traditional churches will be saved.

They are both wrong. Christ paid for all sin, and this includes the sin of not studying enough to root out false doctrine from your mind. Anyone trusting in Christ for their salvation will be saved, in spite of whatever other false doctrines they might believe in. They might be working at the door with Solomon, but at least they will
make it in.

The key though is “Trusting in Christ for Salvation.” Without that, no one will make it into God’s Kingdom.