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Christ Crucified By James R. Faulkner (1)
Why are we here at Church during the week?
Is this the Sabbath? Well today is a Sabbath
day, but not a weekly Sabbath day, it is an annual Sabbath day.
When was this annual Holy Day established and by whom was it established? (Gen 1:14 NRV) 14:
And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to
separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and
for days and years. The word Seasons in the Strongs Concordance is Mowed
and it is number 4150. The
definition has Mowed, mo’ed, and Mowadah: an appointment, a fixed time of
season, a festival, conventionally a year, by implication an assembly (as
convened for a definite purpose), technically the congregation, by extension the
place of meeting, also a signal (as appointed beforehand), appointed sign or
time, place of solemn assembly, congregation, set or solemn feast, appointed or
due season, solemnity, synagogue, set appointed time. Let’s look at some other
scriptures where this same Hebrew word is translated a little differently. (Lev23:2 NRV) 2:
"Say to the people of Israel, The appointed feasts of the LORD which
you shall proclaim as holy convocations, my appointed feasts, are these. The words appointed feasts which is just feasts in the King
James Version is this same word Mowed (4150) that is in Genesis 1:14.
The exact same Hebrew word. Need
more? Also Leviticus 2:4, 37 and
44. (Lev 23:4 NRV) 4: "These are the appointed feasts
(mowed) of the LORD, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time
appointed for them. (Lev 23:37 NRV) 37: "These are the appointed feasts
(mowed) of the LORD, which you shall proclaim as times of holy convocation, for
presenting to the LORD offerings by fire, burnt offerings and cereal offerings,
sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day; (Lev 23:44 NRV) 44: Thus Moses declared to the people of
Israel the appointed feasts (mowed) of the LORD. Now let’s read Genesis 1:14 again with the word
Mowed translated as the translators translated it, multiple times in Leviticus: (Gen 1:14 NRV) 14:
And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to
separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for appointed
feasts and for days and years. Isn’t that interesting that even
before the Sabbath was created that God set the Sun and Moon in the sky as a
calendar for the appointed annual Sabbaths or Holy Days of God?
(Lev
2:5 NRV) 5: In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month in the
evening, is the LORD's passover. So when spring comes indicated by the Sun with the Equinox
and a new crescent moon appears it is the first day of the first month.
Both the Sun and the Moon help determine when the Passover and Days of
Unleavened Bread begin, as it states in Genesis 1:14 the lights in the firmament
were created for this reason. And
what were these great lights? (Gen 1:16 NRV) 16: And God made the two great lights, the
greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; he made
the stars also. What is the greater light that
rules the day? The Sun What is the lesser
light that rules the night? The Moon
But the Jews today hold to their traditions, instead of
following the instructions of God’s word.
They have created the fixed calendar with it’s postponements, which are
not biblical. Julie and I love books and we found this book one day at a
flea market: 1001 Questions and Answers on Pesach by Jeffrey M. Cohen Rabbi Jeffrey M. Cohen has distinguished himself in the field
of religious affairs as a broadcaster, lecturer, writer, and reviewer.
A graduate of the Yeshivot of Manchester and Gateshead, Rabbi Cohen
received a mater’s degree in philosophy form London University and a Ph.D.
from Glasgow University. He is the author of several books, including
Understanding the Synagogye Service, Understanding the High Holyday Services, A
Samaritan Chronicle, Horizons of Jewish Prayer, Moments of Insight, Blessed Are
You: A Comprehensive Guide to Jewish Prayer, and Prayer and Penitence: A
Commentary on the High Holy Day Machzor, as well as over 200 articles.
He is a member of the cabinet of the chief rabbi of Great Britain. He currently serves as the rabbi of Stanmore and Canons Park
Synagogue, the largest Orthodox congregation in Great Britain.
He and his wife, Gloria, reside in London.
They have four children and five grandchildren. Chapter 11: When Erev Pesach Falls on a Shabbat Question 205: Is this a quirk of the modern, fixed calendar,
and was it avoided in ancient Temple times when greater flexibility existed? It is true that in Temple times there was no fixed calendar,
and the first day of each new month (Rosh Chodesh) was determined by witnesses
coming to testify before the Sanhedrin that they had seen the first sign of the
new moon the previous evening. However,
once that testimony had been accepted and the day of the hearing declared “Day
One” of the new month (or, if no witness came, the following day), there was
nothing that could be done to change the incidence of any festival during that
coming month, however inconvenient the situation might be. Question 206: Have we any evidence of Erev Pesach falling on
a Shabbat during the talmudic period (first-sixth centuries)? Indeed, it was the occurrence of Erev Pesach on a
Shabbat that catapulted Hillel to prominence, and ultimately to leadership (as
elected Nasi, or Patriarch) of Palastinian Jewry, around the turn of the Common
Era. The Bnei Beteirah, a patrician
family who undeservedly wielded religious leadership, were unable to give a
ruling one year when the eve of Pesach occurred on a Shabbat. They were asked
whether the law prohibiting slaughtering on the Sabbath (apart, that is, from
the temple Continual Offering which, tradition had established, superseded the
sanctity of the Sabbath day) applied also to the Paschal lamb. Hillel, who had
already distinguished himself among the populace as a great teacher and a
concerned protector of the poor and uneducated, gave a definite ruling,
buttressed with proofs from tradition as well as by logical inferences (see
Talmud Pesachim 66a) Question 207: What difficulties does this occurrence pose? Many: just wait and see!
Put simply, it means that for Orthodox Jews, who abide by the
restrictions of Sabbath Law, none of the multifarious activities that tradition
and necessity reserve for the eve of Pesach may be performed.
These include searching for the chametz at nightfall (in this situation,
that is a Friday night, after the onset of Shabbat), burning it the following
morning (one is not permitted to kindle a flame on the Sabbath), preperation of
the Sedar plate (even those activities involved in food preperation that are
permitted on the Sabbath – such as laying the Sedar table – may not be
preformed on this particular Sabbath because of the law that one may not prepare
anything on Sabbath for after the Sabbath), cooking for the Seder, last minute
cleaning of the home and so forth. So what is more important?
The word and truth of God, or the traditions of the Jews?
I think Jesus made that point very clear when he stated in Mark 7:6-8. (Mark 7:6-8 NRV) 6: And he said to them, "Well did
Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, `This people honors me with
their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7: in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.' 8: You leave the commandment of God,
and hold fast the tradition of men." Now back to Lev 2:5: (Lev 2:5 NRV) 5: In the first month, on the fourteenth day of
the month in the evening, is the LORD's passover. Notice this scripture does NOT say that Passover is on the 15th.
Moses wrote this scripture and kept this scripture, but there are some
who do not believe Moses. The Jews
have a tradition of merging the 14th and 15th into one
event, but Jesus did not follow that tradition. (Matthew
26:17 NRV) 17: Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to
Jesus, saying, "Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the passover?"
The word day is improperly added in this scripture.
It would be to late to prepare for the Passover on the 15th,
even if you kept it on the 15th it would be to late to prepare it
after you were supposed to have already kept it.
This verse should read as it does in the Interlinear Bible: And on the
first of the unleavened came the disciples. In modern language we would say as the Days of Unleavened
Bread approached the disciples came and asked Jesus, Where will you have us
prepare the Passover for you? And what was Jesus reply? (Matthew
26:18-19 NRV) 18: He said, "Go into the city to a certain one, and say to
him, `The Teacher says, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at your
house with my disciples.'" 19: And the disciples did as Jesus had directed
them, and they prepared the passover. Jesus did not say, I will be dead and unable to keep the
Passover with my disciples. Jesus
did not say that. Jesus told his
disciples: “I will keep the Passover
at your house with my disciples” Notice the disciples did not question Jesus about it being a
day early. No, just the opposite,
it was the disciples that came to Jesus and asked, where do you want us to
prepare for the Passover. They knew
it was time. Let’s look at some of the Jewish
traditions of the Passover to understand better what they do.
From the website www.ou.org/chagim/pesach/pesachguide/maze/basic5.htm What Is The
Passover "SEDER"? The
Seder is a ritual banquet which reenacts the Exodus, conducted on
both the first and second evenings of Passover. Its major feature is the reading of the Haggadah, which
relates, in detail, the events of the Exodus of the Jewish people from ancient
Egypt, complete with symbolic reenactments using Kosher wine, specially prepared
Matzah, and bitter herbs. The specially prepared Shmurah Matzah is made specifically for
use at the Seder, with specially supervised flour according to particularly
stringent Jewish traditions and laws. The bitter herbs (Maror) consisting of
either romaine lettuce or horseradish, commemorate the harsh conditions of
slavery in ancient Egypt. Four cups of wine are consumed during the course of the Seder
to commemorate the redemption of the Jewish people, the sanctity of the holiday
and events related in the Haggadah. The Seder is a traditional occasion for
Jewish families to gather together to reinforce their ties to Judaism. Did you catch that? Two
evenings of Passover. We would call
one of them Passover and the other The Night to Be Much Observed.
The Jews call them the two evenings of Passover. And also in this book by a Jewish Rabbi: 1001 Questions and
Answers on Pesach by Jeffrey M. Cohen Chapter 10 Symbolism
of the Seder Ritual page 71: Question 183: Are there any restrictions on the type of wine
one may use for the Sedar? Naturally, one should use only a kasher wine, bottled under
rabbinic supervision and bearing the seal “kasher for Passover.”
Red wine is preferred for use at the Seder, though if one possesses a
white wine that is superior to the red, then that may be used. Question 184: Why is red wine preferred? Because it recalls the blood of the slaughtered Israelite
children, which Pharoah used for bathing in as a cure for his leprosy.
Red wine was also regarded as a superior type, probably on the account of
the depth and richness of it color. Question 190: What is the reason for having roasted shank
bone or neck on the Sedar plate? Answer: This recalls the Paschal lamb that was roasted in
fire in Temple times and partaken of in family groups. Since
the destruction of the temple (70 C.E.), Jews refrained from eating any roasted
meat at the Sedar (in order not to give the impression that they were
maintaining the Paschal lamb practice), so that the roasted shank bone is merely
a symbolic reminder and is not to be eaten.
The shank bone was chosen as it symbolizes the “outstretched arm”
with which God delivered the Israelites. Did you get that? Did
you catch that? In temple times they roasted the lamb at the temple by fire and
partook of it in family groups. That
was exactly what Jesus was doing on the 14th with his disciples: The Jews tend to call all of the spring Holy Days,
Passover. This would include
Passover, The Night to Be Much Observed, The First Day of Unleavened Bread, the
other days of unleavened bread, and the Last Day of Unleavened bread.
They tend to group all these together and call them in the vernacular
“Passover”. Sometimes, the
Bible refers to the whole festive season as Passover, but the bible also shows
they are very distinct days. (Lev 23:4-8 NRV) 4: "These are the appointed feasts of
the LORD, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time appointed
for them. 5: In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month in the
evening, is the LORD's passover. 6: And on the fifteenth day of the same month
is the feast of unleavened bread to the LORD; seven days you shall eat
unleavened bread. 7: On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you
shall do no laborious work. 8: But you shall present an offering by fire to the
LORD seven days; on the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall do no
laborious work." (Exodus
12:6-14 NRV) 6: and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month,
when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in
the evening. 7: Then they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two
doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them. 8: They shall eat
the flesh that night, roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall
eat it. 9: Do not eat any of it raw or boiled with water, but roasted, its head
with its legs and its inner parts. 10: And you shall let none of it remain until
the morning, anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11: In this
manner you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your
staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD's passover.
12: For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will smite all
the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of
Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD.
13: The blood shall be a sign for you, upon the houses where you are; and
when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to
destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 14: "This day shall be for you
a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your
generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever. (Exodus 12:22 NRV) 22: Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in
the blood which is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with
the blood which is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his
house until the morning. (Leviticus 23:28-31 NRV) 28: Then the people of Israel went
and did so; as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 29: At
midnight the LORD smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from the
first-born of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the first-born of the captive who
was in the dungeon, and all the first-born of the cattle. 30: And Pharaoh rose
up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was
a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where one was not dead. 31: And
he summoned Moses and Aaron by night, and said, "Rise up, go forth from
among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as
you have said. Pharaoh called for Moses during the night, but scripture does not say
that Moses went. Who do you think
Moses obeyed? Pharaoh or God? I
believe Moses obeyed God and that’s what the scriptures teach. I just read it in verse 28 and it is repeated in verse 50.
(Leviticus
23:50 NRV) 50: Thus did all the people of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses
and Aaron, so they did. What about the
Apostle Paul, did he believe and follow Moses and Christ? Scripture shows us
that Paul kept it when Christ kept it.
(I Cor 11:1-2 NRV) 1: Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
2: I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the
traditions even as I have delivered them to you. (I Cor 11:17-34 NRV) 17: But in the following instructions I
do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but
for the worse. 18: For, in the first place, when you assemble as a church, I
hear that there are divisions among you; and I partly believe it, 19: for there
must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be
recognized. 20: When you meet together, it is not the Lord's supper that you
eat. 21: For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal, and one is hungry
and another is drunk. 22: What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or
do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What
shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not. 23: For I
received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the
night when he was betrayed took bread, 24: and when he had given thanks, he
broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in
remembrance of me." 25: In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
"This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink
it, in remembrance of me." 26: For as often as you eat this bread and drink
the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 27: Whoever, therefore,
eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be
guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. 28: Let a man examine
himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29: For any one who eats
and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.
30: That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31: But if we
judged ourselves truly, we should not be judged. 32: But when we are judged by
the Lord, we are chastened so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
33: So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another --
34: if any one is hungry, let him eat at home -- lest you come together to be
condemned. About the other things I will give directions when I come. Notice verse 23 that Jesus kept Passover with the Bread and
Wine on the night when he was betrayed. Paul
tells us to follow Christ’s example and Christ’s example was to follow
scripture for keeping the Passover on the 14th, just as Moses
instructed. And that is the example the early Church followed as well. From the Website www.truechristian.org/great_falling_away/03polycarp/03polycarp.htm: But nowhere was this more prevalent or detrimental to the
True Church than at Rome, which was at that time the seat of power, wealth, and
influence over most of the world. It was at this point in Church history
that the same Polycarp who had been a disciple of John (the Apostle of Jesus),
now in his eighties and Bishop of Smyrna, journeyed to Rome. There he met
with Anicetus, Bishop of Rome, to discuss what came to be known as the "Quartodecimen
Controversy".
The Quartodeciman controversy? Do you know what Quartodecimen
means Quarto (4) and Decimen (10) put it together and you get 14!
And who taught Polycarp this? The apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved. If someone is not going to believe Moses, not going to
believe Christ, not going to believe the apostle Paul, not going to believe the
Apostle John, then don’t expect them to believe you. The merging of the 14th Passover with the 15th
Night to Be Much Observed is nothing but a tradition of the Jews that Moses did
not follow, that Jesus did not follow, that the Apostle Paul did not follow,
that the Apostle John did not follow and that the Early Church did not follow.
That is why I keep and teach a 14th Passover. (2)
The Messiah was a servant and we must be servants. (John
13:1-17 RSV) 1: Now before the
feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of
this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved
them to the end. 2: And during supper, when the devil had already put it into
the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, 3: Jesus, knowing that
the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God
and was going to God, 4: rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and girded
himself with a towel. 5: Then he poured water into a basin, and began to wash
the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded.
6: He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, "Lord, do you wash my
feet?" 7: Jesus answered him,
"What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will
understand." 8: Peter said to him, "You shall never wash my
feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part in
me." 9: Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my
hands and my head!" 10: Jesus said to him, "He who has bathed does not
need to wash, except for his feet, but he is clean all over; and you are clean,
but not every one of you." 11: For he knew who was to betray him; that was
why he said, "You are not all clean." 12: When he had washed their
feet, and taken his garments, and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do
you know what I have done to you? 13: You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are
right, for so I am. 14: If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15: For I have given you an example,
that you also should do as I have done to you. 16: Truly, truly, I say to you, a
servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he
who sent him. 17: If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. Is it important for us to also be
servants? (Mat 20:25-28 NRV) 25:
But Jesus called them to him and said, "You know that the rulers of the
Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them.
26: It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be
your servant, 27: and whoever would be first among you must be your slave; 28:
even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life
as a ransom for many." (Mat 25:31-46 NRV)
31: "When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with
him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32: Before him will be gathered
all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd
separates the sheep from the goats, 33: and he will place the sheep at his right
hand, but the goats at the left. 34: Then the King will say to those at his
right hand, `Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world; 35: for I was hungry and you gave me food, I
was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36: I
was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and
you came to me.' 37: Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see
thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? 38: And when did we
see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? 39: And when did
we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?' 40: And the King will answer
them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my
brethren, you did it to me.' 41: Then he will say to those at his left hand,
`Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and
his angels; 42: for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you
gave me no drink, 43: I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you
did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' 44: Then they
also will answer, `Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or
naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to thee?' 45: Then he will
answer them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of
these, you did it not to me.' 46: And they will go away into eternal punishment,
but the righteous into eternal life." I ask
again, Is it important for us to also be servants? Let us remember as we keep the days of Unleavened bread that
there are people out there that NEED our help.
Let’s make sure WE are there for them. (3)
The Messiah suffered and we must suffer. (Mat 26:26 NRV)
26: Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it,
and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." (John 19:1-19 NRV)
1: Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged him. 2: And the soldiers plaited a
crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and arrayed him in a purple robe; 3:
they came up to him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" and struck him
with their hands. 4: Pilate went out again, and said to them, "See, I am
bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him." 5:
So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said
to them, "Behold the man!" 6: When the chief priests and the officers
saw him, they cried out, "Crucify him, crucify him!" Pilate said to
them, "Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in
him." 7: The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and by that law he
ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God." 8: When Pilate
heard these words, he was the more afraid; 9: he entered the praetorium again
and said to Jesus, "Where are you from?" But Jesus gave no answer. 10:
Pilate therefore said to him, "You will not speak to me? Do you not know
that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?" 11: Jesus
answered him, "You would have no power over me unless it had been given you
from above; therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin." 12:
Upon this Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, "If you
release this man, you are not Caesar's friend; every one who makes himself a
king sets himself against Caesar." 13: When Pilate heard these words, he
brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The
Pavement, and in Hebrew, Gab'batha.14: Now it was the day of Preparation of the
Passover; it was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, "Behold your
King!" 15: They cried out, "Away with him, away with him, crucify
him!" Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief
priests answered, "We have no king but Caesar." 16: Then he handed him
over to them to be crucified. 17: So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing
his own cross, to the place called the place of a skull, which is called in
Hebrew Gol'gotha. 18: There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on
either side, and Jesus between them.19: Pilate also wrote a title and put it on
the cross; it read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." Interesting is a story of the making of the Movie “The
Passion”. The actor portraying Christ was being depicted as being flogged.
The actor doing the simulated flogging accidentally got to close and
actually gave a stripe to the other actor that put a laceration on the back of
the other actor. The actor rose and gave some not to kind words to the other
actor. One stroke, and he could not
hold his tongue. Jesus, took all
the strokes without uttering a single word of animosity. Why did
the Messiah have to suffer? Why
couldn’t it have been quick and painless?
Have you ever wondered that? There
are several reasons, but today I want to focus on just one of them. (Heb 2:9-10 NRV)
9: But we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the
angels, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that
by the grace of God he might taste death for every one. 10: For it was fitting
that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory,
should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering. If the
Messiah, who was without sin, had to suffer to learn perfection, then how much
more must we? I’ve heard many
people say they were a part of the Church to avoid the tribulation.
I’ll bet most of us in here have heard people say this.
We better read the book a little closer. (John
16:33 NRV) 33: I have said this to
you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of
good cheer, I have overcome the world." He didn’t say you MIGHT suffer
tribulation, he said you SHALL suffer tribulation. With suffering comes compassion. It’s a hard and difficult
path that we tread and we knew this when we were baptized, but we must not get
discouraged. As we keep these days
of unleavened bread let us remember that the unleavened bread represents the
Messiah’s body, let us realize and never forget that there is no easy way into
the kingdom. (4)
The Messiah forgave and we must forgive. (Mat 26:27-29 NRV) 26:
Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave
it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." 27: And he
took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink
of it, all of you; 28: for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out
for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29: I tell you I shall not drink again of
this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my
Father's kingdom." The Messiah lost his life that we might be forgiven.
Is it important for us to also forgive those who wrong us? (Mat 18:21-35 NRV)
21: Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord, how often shall my
brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" 22:
Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times
seven. 23: "Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who
wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24: When he began the reckoning,
one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents; 25: and as he could
not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all
that he had, and payment to be made. 26: So the servant fell on his knees,
imploring him, `Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.' 27:
And out of pity for him the lord of that servant released him and forgave him
the debt. 28: But that same servant, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow
servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat he said,
`Pay what you owe.' 29: So his fellow servant fell down and besought him, `Have
patience with me, and I will pay you.' 30: He refused and went and put him in
prison till he should pay the debt. 31: When his fellow servants saw what had
taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their
lord all that had taken place. 32: Then his lord summoned him and said to him,
`You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you besought me; 33:
and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on
you?' 34: And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers, till he should pay
all his debt. 35: So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you
do not forgive your brother from your heart." How
often will we forgive our brothers? or How often will our Father in heaven
forgive us? We need to remember
that as we forgive others, we will be forgiven.
Makes you want to be mighty merciful, doesn’t it? (5)
The Messiah loved the flock and we must love the flock. (John 13:31-35 NRV) 31: When he had gone out, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of
man glorified, and in him God is glorified; 32: if God is glorified in him, God
will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. 33: Little children,
yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me; and as I said to the Jews so
now I say to you, `Where I am going you cannot come.' 34: A new commandment I
give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also
love one another. 35: By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if
you have love for one another." Do you love your brothers and
sisters in the faith that much? Would
I give my life for you? Would you give your life for me?
Jesus the Messiah, DID!
He died for you and me. And he tells us we should love one
another, that much. As our savior was on the stake and
he was dieing he stated: “It is finished.”
But for us, it is NOT YET finished.
We must carry on and continue to follow our master’s example and keep
the faith. As we keep these days of
unleavened bread this week, let us remember that Jesus the Messiah was a servant
and we must be servants in order to learn to be leaders who will follow Christ
in everything. Let us remember that
Jesus the Messiah suffered and we must suffer to learn compassion and obedience.
Let us remember that Jesus forgave and we must forgive that we may be
forgiven. And let us show clearly to the world that we ARE his
disciples, by our love we show for those of the faith. |
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Contact us at jrfaulkner@charter.net Somerset Sabbath Fellowship 1.6 |