THEY WILL GREET GOD’S MESSENGERS OF GOOD NEWS WITH DISDAIN

By Joe Ortiz

     One of the biggest moments of sadness I experience in broadcasting the Gospel (that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay for our sins, and those who believe in Him shall have everlasting life), I run across many who respond to the Good News with scorn, wrath and rage rather than thanksgiving.

     I’m a reminded about a story in the Bible that addresses that issue rather clearly, one that hopefully will give fellow disciples some comfort. That story is about one of God’s greatest prophets, Elijah, who experienced this malady, written in the book of 1 Kings, chapter 18.

     As the story unfolds God had sent Elijah to visit King Ahab to inform him that rain was on the way. Ahab’s servant, Obadaiah, greeted Elijah in an honorable fashion, recognizing that Elijah was God's servant. Instead of welcoming Elijah with open arms (to receive the good news), the faithless Ahab teated Elijah with disdain, the paranoid king feeling that Elijah was causing the nation of Israel great troubles. Nevertheless, a meeting between Elijah and Ahab was held. 
     For the rest of the story, let us call upon one of God’s greatest Bible commentators, Matthew Henry, who provides us with profound comments about that meeting and its significance. Let’s join Henry as he unfolds the inner-machinations of Elijah’s meeting with Ahab:

     “We have here the meeting between Ahab and Elijah, as bad a king as ever the world was plagued with and as good a prophet as ever the church was blessed with. Ahab, like himself, basely accused Elijah. He durst not strike him, remembering that Jeroboam’s hand withered when it was stretched out against a prophet, but gave him bad language, which was no less an affront to him that sent him. It was a very coarse compliment with which he accosted him at the first word: Art thou he that troubleth Israel? v. 17. How unlike was this to that with which his servant Obadiah saluted him (v. 7): Art thou that my lord Elijah? Obadiah feared God greatly; Ahab had sold himself to work wickedness; and both discovered their character by the manner of their address to the prophet. One may guess how people stand affected to God by observing how they stand affected to his people and ministers. Elijah now came to bring blessings to Israel, tidings of the return of the rain; yet he was thus affronted. Had it been true that he was the troubler of Israel, Ahab, as king, would have been bound to animadvert (to pay attention to, censure, from animum advertere, literally, to turn the mind) upon him.

     There are those who trouble Israel by their wickedness, whom the conservators of the public peace are concerned to enquire after. But it was utterly false concerning Elijah; so far was he from being an enemy to Israel’s welfare that he as the stay of it, the chariots and horsemen of Israel. Note, it has been the lot of the best and most useful men to be called and counted the troublers of the land, and to be run down as public grievances.

     Even Christ and his apostles were thus misrepresented, Acts 17:6. 2. Elijah, like himself, boldly returned the charge upon the king, and proved it upon him, that he was the troubler of Israel, v. 18. Elijah is not the Achan: "I have not troubled Israel, have neither done them any wrong nor designed them any hurt.’’ Those that procure God’s judgments do the mischief, not he that merely foretels them and gives warning of them, that the nation may repent and prevent them. I would have healed Israel, but they would not be healed. Ahab is the Achan, the troubler, who follows Baalim, those accursed things. Nothing creates more trouble to a land than the impiety and profaneness of princes and their families.

     As one having authority immediately from the King of kings, he ordered a convention of the states to be forthwith summoned to meet at Mount Carmel, where there had been an altar built to God, v. 30. Probably on that mountain they had an eminent high place, where formerly the pure worship of God had been kept up as well as it could be any where but at Jerusalem. Thither all Israel must come, to give Elijah the meeting; and the prophets of Baal who were dispersed all the country over, with those of the groves who were Jezebel’s domestic chaplains, must there make their personal appearance.

     Ahab issued out writs accordingly, for the convening of this great assembly (v. 20), either because he feared Elijah and durst not oppose him (Saul stood in awe of Samuel more than of God), or because he hoped Elijah would bless the land, and speak the word that they might have rain, and upon those terms they would be all at his beck. Those that slighted and hated his counsels would gladly be beholden to him for his prayers. Now God made those who said they were Jews and were not, but were of the synagogue of Satan, to come, and, in effect, to worship at his feet, and to know that God had loved him, Rev. 3:9.

     Ahab and the people expected that Elijah would, in this solemn assembly, bless the land, and pray for rain; but he had other work to do first. The people must be brought to repent and reform, and then they may look for the removal of the judgment, but not till then. This is the right method. God will first prepare our heart, and then cause his ear to hear, will first turn us to him, and then turn to us, Ps. 10:17; 80:3. Deserters must not look for God’s favour till they return to their allegiance. 

     Elijah might have looked for rain seventy times seven times, and not have seen it, if he had not thus begun his work at the right end. Three years and a half’s famine would not bring them back to God. Elijah would endeavour to convince their judgments, and no doubt it was by special warrant and direction from heaven that he put the controversy between God and Baal upon a public trial. It was great condescension in God that he would suffer so plain a case to be disputed, and would permit Baal to be a competitor with him; but thus God would have every mouth to be stopped and all flesh to become silent before him. God’s cause is so incontestably just that it needs not fear to have the evidences of its equity searched into and weighed.

     Elijah reproved the people for mixing the worship of God and the worship of Baal together. Not only some Israelites worshipped God and others Baal, but the same Israelites sometimes worshipped one and sometimes the other. This he calls (v. 21) halting between two opinions, or thoughts. They worshipped God to please the prophets, but worshipped Baal to please Jezebel and curry favour at court. They thought to trim the matter, and play on both sides, as the Samaritans, 2 Ki. 17:33.

     Now Elijah shows them the absurdity of this. He does not insist upon their relation to Jehovah—"Is he not yours, and the God of your fathers, while Baal is the god of the Sidonians? And will a nation change their god?’’ Jer. 2:11. No, he waives the prescription, and enters upon the merits of the cause:

     "There can be but one God, but one infinite and but one supreme: there needs but one God, one omnipotent, one all-sufficient. What occasion for addition to that which is perfect? Now if, upon trial, it appears that Baal is that one infinite omnipotent Being, that one supreme Lord and all-sufficient benefactor, you ought to renounce Jehovah and cleave to Baal only: but, if Jehovah be that one God, Baal is a cheat, and you must have no more to do with him.’’

     Note: It is a very bad thing to halt between God and Baal. "In reconcilable differences (says bishop Hall) nothing more safe than indifference both of practice and opinion; but, in cases of such necessary hostility as between God and Baal, he that is not with God is against him.’’ Compare Mk. 9:38, 39, with Mt. 21:30. 

     The service of God and the service of sin, the dominion of Christ and the dominion of our lusts, these are the two thoughts which it is dangerous halting between. Those halt between them that are unresolved under their convictions, unstable and unsteady in their purposes, promise fair, but do not perform, begin well, but do not hold on, that are inconsistent with themselves, or indifferent and lukewarm in that which is good. Their heart is divided (Hos. 10:2), whereas God will have all or none. 

     We are fairly put to our choice whom we will serve, Jos. 24:15. If we can find one that has more right to us, or will be a better master to us, than God, we may take him at our peril. God demands no more from us than he can make out a title to. To this fair proposal of the case, which Elijah here makes, the people knew not what to say: They answered him not a word. They could say nothing to justify themselves, and they would say nothing to condemn them, but, as people confounded, let him say what he would." (Matthew Henry, commentary on 1 Kings 18:18-21)

All in all, dear friends, God has forever been seeking union with His creation. He seeks not to force Himself on us, but rather that we realize there is only one God. To praise, worship and follow other gods, ideologies, superstitions, man-made traditions, and altered doctrines (contrary to His will and His word) will create a chasm between God and His people, and places a giant roadblock to the blessings He wishes to bestow to those who believe in Him and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

     Regardless, rejection of His blessings and those who deliver His message of good tidings, will incur them great consequences to their own detriment.

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Joe Ortiz is the author of two books that challenge the Left Behind and Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and premillennial dispensational precepts and doctrines being promoted by many right-wing evangelicals. The two books include The End Times Passover (Etymological Challenges to Millenarian Doctrines) and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation (The Sequel to The End Times Passover), published by Author House. The former talk show host, journalist and news columnist is the first Mexican American to host a show on an English-language, commercial radio station, beginning in 1971 at KABC-AM Radio in Los Angeles.]

 Blog addresses:

The End Times Passover

Our Daily Bread Joe's web sites below:

• Joe Ortiz Associates    Web site for Joe Ortiz Associates, a full service public relations company
• The End Times Passover   Web site to discuss end times topics and to promote books written by Joe Ortiz
• Tom Flores NFL USA     This is the new and official site of the Official Tom Flores Fan Club, managed by Joe Ortiz, fan club President

                                                                                        

A House For All Peoples

By guest author, Ched Myers

[I ran across this following article and immediately contacted Ched Myers and asked him if I could repost this on my blog. This article was first published in Sojourner’s Magazine, April 2006, over three and a half years before the immigration reform issue ballooned to the explosive and divisive debacle it has evolved to. The appeal of this article centered on the fact that Ched Myers is one of the few people I know who has brought forth pertinent and specific scripture to the table of the immigrant debate, an approach I have attempted on this blog since its inception several months ago.

What saddens me the most about the immigration reform debate is that so many of my Christian friends are at the forefront of many mean-spirited groups that have chosen to spew forth the most vile epithets against Latino people, by not only impugning the character of immigrants, but many sincerely believe that God supports their efforts, primarily because (they believe) immigrants who have crossed the border of Mexico to this country are criminals and low-life parasites who want to drain this country of its wealth and resources. The only true argument against this sordid view is to not only educate the masses how God feels about ‘the alien in our midst,’ but that hopefully, my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ will recognize their folly - Joe Ortiz]

There have always been two Americas: that of rich and poor, of inclusion and exclusion. The America of inclusion found expression in the ideal of "liberty and justice for all," and has been embodied whenever Indian treaties were honored, and in the embrace of civil rights, women's suffrage, or child labor laws. The America of exclusion, on the other hand, was articulated in a Constitution that originally enfranchised only white landed males and has been realized in land grabs, Jim Crow segregation, Gilded Age economic stratification, and restrictive housing covenants.

These two visions of America continually compete for our hearts and minds, not least in our churches. On one side are the voices of Emma Lazarus in her poem "The New Colossus" ("Give me your tired, your poor..."), and Martin Luther King Jr. when he preached "I Have a Dream." On the other side are those of George W. Bush's imperial politics and James Dobson's "Focus on the Family."

Perhaps the most consistent battleground between the two Americas, from inception to the present, has concerned immigration. Where our churches locate themselves on this political and theological terrain is profoundly consequential.

All social groups establish boundaries-whether physical impediments, such as fences or borders, or symbolic and cultural lines, such as language or dietary laws. Such boundaries can be a good thing, especially when they help protect weaker people from domination by stronger people. More often, however, boundaries function in the opposite manner: to shore up the privileges of the strong against the needs of the weak. It is this latter kind of boundary that characterizes the current U.S. immigration debate and that the Bible consistently challenges.

Torah warns the people not to discriminate against economic or political refugees, since in God's eyes even Israelites are "but aliens and tenants" in the land (Leviticus 25:23). Instead they are to stand in solidarity with the "sojourners in our midst" (Deuteronomy 24:14). This is later reiterated in the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth: "I was a stranger and you welcomed me" (Matthew 25:35). I want to go beyond these well-known exhortations, however, and examine one text from each Testament that together makes a powerful case that the very health of our body politic depends upon our embrace of "outsiders."

ISAIAH 56:1-8 is the opening stanza of the prophetic oracle sometimes referred to as "Third Isaiah." The parts of the book of Isaiah known as second Isaiah (chapters 40-55) and Third Isaiah (chapters 56-66) represent the work of prophetic successors to the great eighth century prophet himself: the former during the exile to Babylon, the latter during the "reconstruction" period following the return. These writings arose out of prophetic "schools" (see for example 2 Kings 4:38), in which disciples recontextualized the word and work of their teachers in another historical moment. This is, of course, what all preachers do every time we try to proclaim the Word in the midst of a given social situation.

Isaiah 56:1-8 is his "invocation," setting a tone of radical inclusion, envisioning a time when people from all over the world, including ethnic outsiders and other minorities, will be welcomed as full members into God's house. The prophet reiterates this theme at the close of his oracle as well: "The time has come to gather all the nations and tongues; they shall come and behold my glory" (Isaiah 66:18). This is the "new heaven and new earth" that Yahweh intends to bring about (66:22).

Scholars date Third Isaiah sometime in the first two generations of the exiles' return from Babylon, between the reconstruction of the temple (circa 515 BCE) and the time of Nehemiah (circa 444 BCE). There were many issues facing those trying to rebuild Israelite society under the imperial rule of Persia. Those who had been exiled to Babylon were the upper classes of Israelite society: priests, managers, the landed aristocracy, scribes, etc. The peasant majority, however-the "people of the land"-had remained behind in Palestine, working the land and scraping out a living, as the poor have always done under any regime. As the elites began to trickle back, they set about trying to re-establish their title to land, social status, and political position.

Clinton Hammock, in a monograph analyzing in detail this social and historical context, argues that these returnees were a mixed bag and included land speculators and carpetbaggers trying to take economic advantage of the new settlements; priests determined to re-establish a cultic center as their power base; ultra-nationalists who saw a chance to rebuild old dreams of sovereignty; and political front men for Israel's Persian overlords. They all agreed on one thing, however: They would define and lead the reconstruction project.

It is not hard to imagine, then, their conflicts with the existing population over property, politics, and religion, and indeed we hear allusions to this in Nehemiah 4-6. We need only think of the situation of Palestine since 1948, also a struggle between longtime residents on the land being disenfranchised by ideologically motivated and politically and militarily powerful "returnees."

The strategy of the elites was to purge the "people of the land" by establishing new ethnic purity standards, focusing on shoring up boundaries of marriage and nationality. The Persians were supportive of such measures, as they wanted their colony to be ethnically uniform to better enable their imperial management. Thus Nehemiah forbids future intermarriages (Nehemiah 10), while Ezra goes further, demanding the divorce of foreign wives (Ezra 910). This position was likely legitimated on the basis of Deuteronomy 23:18, which specifically excluded "from the assembly" males who were not sexually functional, the "illegitimately" born, and foreigners.

It is not hard to understand why the peasants resisted these attempts to exclude them, and Third Isaiah emerged as their advocate. He argues against the position of Ezra and Nehemiah, taking issue specifically with their view that the nation is best protected through purity codes. Instead, the prophet calls for the community to be preserved through ethical behavior: Whoever keeps the Sabbath covenant is entitled to full inclusion. He underlines the point using two "extreme" examples: eunuchs and foreigners.

The oracle begins with a dramatic exhortation: "This is what God says: 'Defend justice! Do what is right! Then I will vindicate you!'" (Isaiah 56:1). From the outset the issue is justice, defined in 56:2 as obeying Torah, keeping Sabbath, and turning away from evil. The prophet is invoking Sabbath as the heart of Torah ethos, with its twin social concerns to 1) Constrain greed: Everyone must have enough and the gifts of creation should circulate rather than concentrate (Exodus 16:16-19) and 2) Deconstruct poverty: releasing those who groan under the burden of debt (Deuteronomy 15) and allowing the poor to glean the surplus of the fields (Exodus 23:10-12).

But Third Isaiah goes further, addressing those who are being legally and socially excluded on the basis of purity. We hear the voice of those who have internalized this rejection in terms of their self-worth and social prospects: "Let not the foreigner say, 'The Lord will surely separate me from his people'; let not the eunuch say 'I am just a dry tree.' For this is what God says..." (Isaiah 56:3).

The eunuch who keeps the Sabbath covenant will receive "in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off' (56:5 is a play on the Hebrew word for eunuch, which comes from a root meaning to castrate). The prophet knew very well that eunuchs were, according to Levitical strictures, supposed to be "cut off from benefits of cult and family life, which would mean their names would also be lost to posterity, an ancient way of rendering someone socially invisible.

Instead, God promises an honored place in the "house," something better than pride of genealogy or title to land. This is symbolized by a special "monument" and an "everlasting name." (Playfully, the Hebrew word rendered as "monument" is yd, which can also be a euphemism for "penis.") This is a poignant word to the current debate over exclusion of lesbian and gay people from full status in church and society.

The only people below eunuchs in the social hierarchy were foreigners-and this is exactly who the prophet next addresses. If foreigners follow God and observe the Sabbath covenant, "I will bring them to my holy mountain, and their sacrifices will be acceptable. Because my house will be known as a place where all nations pray" (Isaiah 56:7). This is Third Isaiah's answer to Ezra and Nehemiah's culture war on those who didn't fit the national ideal.

In his view, the Jerusalem temple was meant to be a world house, not a national shrine (as every other temple in antiquity was). Yahweh welcomes whosoever desires to follow the Way, regardless of who they are in their somatic or ethnic identity. Third Isaiah's perspective did not, however, prevail against the ethnocentric strategy of Ezra and Nehemiah. Indeed, many of those kicked out of the newly proscribed Judean body politic ended up as the despised "Samaritans" of Jesus' day. But God's Word did not prove fruitless.

More than four centuries later, a young Jesus of Nazareth, preaching his first sermon, looked hard at his audience and proceeded to read from the heart of Third Isaiah's oracle (Luke 4:18 parallels Isaiah 61:1). Jesus may have staked his entire ministry on a re-appropriation of this prophetic tradition. He invokes it again at the culmination of his struggle with the public authorities in Jerusalem: In the midst of his dramatic "exorcism" of the temple, Jesus quotes directly from our text: "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples" (Luke 19:46 parallels Isaiah 56:7). It was this vision of radical inclusion that animated Jesus' constant transgressions of the social boundaries of his day: eating with lepers, hanging out with women, touching the impure, teaching the excluded. More than anything else, it may have been what got him strung up.

(Menudo? Of course, senora, I would love a bowl!)

Jesus most clearly addressed this issue in an oft-overlooked parable found in Mark's gospel. "There is nothing which goes into you that can defile you; only that which comes out of you defiles you" (Mark 7:15). This teaching is another prophetic skirmish with the social function of the purity code. Mark's Jesus is defending his disciples' practice of sharing table fellowship with the "unclean" outsider (Mark 7:1-5) by insisting that "What goes into a person's body from the outside cannot contaminate it" (7:18). Mark presents this parable as one whose meaning the disciples must not mm (7:17)!

Jesus is proposing the physical body as a symbol of the "body politic of the nation (a metaphor employed also by Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:12). His point - which echoes exactly Third Isaiah's argument - is that the social boundaries constructed by an exclusionary purity code are powerless to protect the integrity of the community, which can only truly be "corrupted" from within. In what may be at once his most radical and most widely ignored teaching, Jesus rejects all culturally proprietary boundaries that allegedly protect a community from perceived external threats. Scape-goating or excluding outsiders cannot protect us; we must look to our own ethical behavior. "Only that which comes out of you defiles you" (Mark 7:20).

The episodes that immediately follow in Mark's narrative underscore the point. Jesus' own male and ethnic honor is challenged in the story of the Syro-Phoenician woman. In the sole gospel instance of Jesus losing a verbal joust, he concedes the justice of this female foreigner's insistence upon inclusion (Mark 7:24-30). The expanded circle of enfranchisement is then illustrated by the feeding of Gentile multitudes (Mark 8:1-9). Jesus then warns his disciples to "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Herodians" (8:15), which represents the social and political exclusivity that jeopardizes the "one loaf” around which the church is called to gather.

To be sure, issues related to the continuing and often involuntary migration of people, and to the geopolitical definition of human communities, are complex in the modern world and deserve our careful reflection and deliberation. But these are finally theological and pastoral issues for Christians, and we must seek to know immigrants and refugees not as statistics but as human beings who endure extraordinary hardship and trauma in their struggle to survive.

And for U.S. citizens, these are issues of national identity. Israel's ethic of compassion toward outsiders was shaped by its own history of pain: "You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt" (Exodus 22:21). We, too, are a nation of immigrants. Amidst the current culture wars that marginalize immigrants and refugees, then, our churches must choose which America we embrace. To do that we must "hear and understand" Jesus' teaching afresh (Mark 7:14), and that of Third Isaiah before him. If we refuse to take sides with today's outsiders, we too are "without understanding" (Mark 7:18).

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Ched Myers, a fifth generation Californian, is a minister, author, speaker and activist who lives in Oak View, CA. Over the past three decades he has worked with many peace and justice organizations and movements, including the American Friends Service Committee, the Pacific Concerns Resource Center and the Pacific Life Community. Today, with Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries, he focuses on building capacity for biblical literacy, church renewal and faith-based witness for justice. He can be contacted at: Ched Myers, Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries, PO Box 328, Oak View, CA 93022

Joe Ortiz is the author of this blog and also two books that challenge the Pre-Tribulation Rapture and Left Behind dogma being promoted by many right-wing evangelicals to justify military resolution the historical Middle East crisis. For more information about his two books, The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation, visit the The End Times Passover ~

For They Loved Praise from Men More Than Praise from God!

Many people confuse the attributes of God with Jesus and vice verse. I know I did as I was growing up. I had these images of Jesus as a loving, warm, kind human being who loved the little children; but my view of God was one of a big, mean person, up in heaven with a loaded shotgun, ready to blow me away for committing even the smallest sin.

Later on I learned that God, in reality, is just like Jesus because Jesus told us that if you have seen Him, you have seen the father (John 14:9). From that day forward, I have learned that God is a loving God, but who also requires obedience. He is also the God (in case we fail to meet His standards) who has provided us with the ultimate escape clause, the act of redemption performed by Jesus as He sacrificed His life on the cross to pay for our debts.

Throughout my 35 year journey as a disciple of Christ, one of the hardest things to deal with has been my ego. It is this that most of the time stands between us and God from a totally and completely fulfilled life. It is our ego, and the need to be praised by others, that for many has been a lifelong quest to the detriment of living a truly victorious life in all that we seek and do.

It’s a terrible struggle, especially for those of us who have been blessed with gifts from God which we credit ourselves for creating and or developing rather than thanking him and praising Him for the glorious (yet undeserved) opportunity to use those gifts in an honorable manner. We are gifted surgeons, innovative contractors, stalwart administrators, above average athletes, blessed with creative talents in music, art, drama, writing and communication skills, among others. But yet, we find ourselves seeking praise and glory for these skills and attributes rather than praising the true author of these blessings: God!

One of the reasons we fail to give thanks and praise to Jesus is because we fail to recognize that He is God (John 10:30, John 14:9)! Many folks do not believe this, and most often, lump Him along with Buddha, Mohammad and other lesser known religious icons. Jesus doesn’t need to be praised, He doesn’t need nor want recognition (as most men do) but He does weep for those He loves the most, those He wants to bless (in all things), especially with eternal salvation, who instead shun that gift and seek to heap glory on themselves, yearning to be praised by others rather than to be praised by God!

I have always admired the old theology scholars more so than the new, hip, pop, self-professed prophets that inundate the television, radio and Internet, those seeking two primary goals: money and fame!

 
Matthew Henry is considered one of the best commentators of the Bible in antiquity and his analysis of our lead verse above: For they loved praise from men more than praise from God! (John 12:43) sums it up best:

"Some honor was done to Christ by these rulers: for they believed on him, were convinced that he was sent of God, and received his doctrine as divine; but they did not do him honor enough, for they had not courage to own their faith in him. Many professed more kindness for Christ than really they had; these had more kindness for him than they were willing to profess. See here what a struggle was in these rulers between their convictions and their corruptions.

See the power of the word in the convictions that many of them were under, who did not willfully shut their eyes against the light. They believed on him as Nicodemus, received him as a teacher come from God.

Note, the truth of the gospel has perhaps a better interest in the consciences of men than we are aware of. Many cannot but approve of that in their hearts which yet outwardly they are shy of. Perhaps these chief rulers were true believers, though very weak, and their faith likes smoking flax.

Note, it may be, there are more good people than we think there are. Elijah thought he was left alone, when God had seven thousand faithful worshippers in Israel. Some are really better than they seem to be. Their faults are known, but their repentance is not; a man’s goodness may be concealed by a culpable yet pardonable weakness, which he himself truly repents of. The kingdom of God comes not in all with a like observation; nor have all who are good the same faculty of appearing to be so.

See the power of the world in the smothering of these convictions. They believed in Christ, but because of the Pharisees, who had it in their power to do them diskindness; they dare not confess him for fear of being excommunicated. Observe here;

1. Wherein they failed and were defective; they did not confess Christ. There is cause to question the sincerity of that faith which is either afraid or ashamed to show itself; for those who believe with the heart ought to confess with the mouth, Romans10:9.

2. What they feared: being put out of the synagogue (the public arena), which they thought would be a disgrace and damage to them; as if it would do them any harm to be expelled from a synagogue that had made itself a synagogue of Satan, and from which God was departing.

3. What was at the bottom of this fear: They loved the praise of men, chose it as a more valuable good, and pursued it as a more desirable end, than the praise of God; which was an implicit idolatry, like that (Romans1:25) of worshiping and serving the creature more than the Creator. They set these two in the scale one against the other, and, having weighed them, they proceeded accordingly.

(a) They set the praise of men in one scale, and considered how good it was to give praise to men, and to pay a deference to the opinion of the Pharisees, and receive praise from men, to be commended by the chief priests and applauded by the people as good sons of the church, the Jewish church; and they would not confess Christ, lest they should thereby derogate from the reputation of the Pharisees, and forfeit their own, and thus hinder their own preferment. And, besides, the followers of Christ were put into an ill name, and were looked upon with contempt, which those who had been used to honor could not bear. Yet perhaps if they had known one another’s minds they would have had more courage; but each one thought that if he should declare himself in favor of Christ he should stand alone, and have nobody to back him; whereas, if any one had had resolution to break the ice, he would have had more seconds than he thought of.

(b) They put the praise of God in the other scale. They were sensible that by confessing Christ they should both give praise to God, and have praise from God, that he would be pleased with them, and say, Well done; but;

(c) They gave the preference to the praise of men, and this turned the scale; sense prevailed above faith, and represented it as more desirable to stand right in the opinion of the Pharisees than to be accepted of God. Note Love of the praise of men is a very great prejudice to the power and practice of religion and godliness. Many come short of the glory of God by having a regard to the applause of men, and a value for that. Love of the praise of men, as a by-end in that which is good, will make a man a hypocrite when religion is in fashion and credit is to be got by it; and love of the praise of men, as a base principle in that which is evil, will make a man an apostate when religion is in disgrace, and credit is to be lost for it, as here.

We have here the honor Christ not assumed, but asserted, to himself, in the account he gave of his mission and his errand into the world.

Probably this discourse was not at the same time with that before (for them he departed, v. 36), but some time after, when he made another public appearance; and, as this evangelist records it, it was Christ’s farewell sermon to the Jews, and his last public discourse; all that follows was private with his disciples.

Now observe how our Lord Jesus delivered this parting word: he cried and said. Doth not wisdom cry (Proverbs 8:1), in the raising of his voice and crying intimately, His boldness in speaking. Though they had not courage openly to profess faith in his doctrine, he had courage openly to publish it; if they were ashamed of it, he was not, but set his face as a flint, Isaiah 50:7. 2. His earnestness in speaking. He cried as one that was serious and importunate, and in good earnest in what he said, and was willing to impart to them, not only the gospel of God, but even his own soul. It denotes his desire that all might take notice of it. This being the last time of the publication of his gospel by himself in person, he makes proclamation,

"Whoever will hear me, let them come now."

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Joe Ortiz is the author of two books that challenge the Left Behind and Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and premillennial dispensational precepts and doctrines being promoted by many right-wing evangelicals. The two books include The End Times Passover (Etymological Challenges to Millenarian Doctrines) and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation (The Sequel to The End Times Passover), published by Author House. The End Times Passover ~

What is a New Creation?

I have spent most of my last 40 years as a Christian, trying to share with friends, neighbors and relatives, what it means when I say I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, one who has tried to share easy-to-understand language as to what happens to them when they do change their life and choose to devote it to help and to serve others. When a person chooses to follow Christ, in essence, he or she becomes a New Creation. 

WHAT IS A NEW CREATION?             

A Transformation From Death to Eternal Life
By Alan Morrison (edited by Joe Ortiz)

There are many churches in the world which appear to believe that people can become believers and followers of Christ with very little change taking place in their lives or their minds. They can go to church on Sundays and even attend many other church meetings, but their lives do not really change and neither do their ideas. However, that is not a real belief system, nor is it the nature of a true believer and a sincerely committed follower of Jesus Christ.

When you become a believer and follower of Christ, the first thing you do is "repent" -- that is, you confess to God how desperately sorry you are for everything you've ever done wrong, and for shutting Him out of your life. This is necessary in order to become a member of God’s kingdom. But repentance isn't just about being sorry. The Greek word translated as "repent" in the Bible is metanoeo. This is made up of two words which together mean "change of mind". This means that the very foundation of the believer’s life involves a transformed mind! And a transformed mind means a transformed way of looking at everything, and a transformed way of behaving.

Christian conversion will very rarely involve the kind of Damascus Road experience which happened to Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:3-9). But it will ALWAYS involve a profound change of heart and mind. After all, to become a believer and follower of Christ means being turned "from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God" (Acts 26:18). "You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord" (Eph.5:8). This is why Paul encourages believers with the words: "" (Romans 12:2). That transformation involves a completely Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, renewed in the way of viewing the world as it really is. Elsewhere, the apostle says: "Be renewed in the spirit of your mind" (Eph.4:23). Surely, being "renewed in the spirit of your mind" must involve a major change in your worldview! So how does this work out in practice?

When you become a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, your view of moral issues, the world around you and even of history itself becomes different from the view that you held before you were saved -- and very different from the view generally held by the unbelieving world. For example, you will not only realize that abortion, homosexuality and premarital sex are contrary to God's law, you will see how truly false and plastic are men-made philosophies, those based primarily on ego and power, intended to serve only self.

Then, soon, as Christ’s spirit begins to work through you and for you, you will begin to see the metamorphosis and find yourself conducting your life accordingly to His will rather than our own egotistical self. You will find yourself unable to watch many movies, TV programs and other forms of so-called art (those that feed the ego and nurture the base things of the world) such as illicit sex, immoral lifestyles and customs and traditions that glorify evil that is evident of its base content. You will find yourself unable to take part in activities that lend not to the principles of God and His will; you will begin to feel repulsed by former ways to increase your purse such as gambling, lotteries, quick-get-rich schemes because it seems unfaithful to Christ who promises to care for your needs and bless you financially in His own way and time. You will find that you have no desire to spend your time in meaningless leisure situations which are not profitable to the growth of your "inner life".

When you become a believer in Jesus Christ, your behavior will also undergo a profound change. You will become a praying person - which you never were before. You will find yourself unable to be rude and arrogant to others; and if occasionally you are, you will be disgusted with yourself. You will no longer be able to be manipulative towards others or gossipy about them. If you are a husband, you will find that you can no longer mistreat your wife and that you must love her with the utmost sacrifice. If you are a wife, you will find that you no longer have the desire to rebel against the authority of your husband, and that you love to submit to him as the head of the household, both realizing that decisions that affect the family can be mutually agreed upon before the husband takes on the responsibility of not only making the final decision but being prepared to deal with the consequences if wrong choices have been made. If either of you stumble in this, as you inevitably will, you will soon realize that God allowed certain things to happen as an example to learn better solving skills.

You will begin to realize that you must avoid deliberately doing things which will endanger your health, not just with smoking issues, but learning that moderation in all things (food, drinking, etc) are designed to maintain a body prepared for service; for "You are not your own (person any longer); for you were bought at a price" (1 Cor.6:19-20), through His crucifixion, which paid the price for the sins of all mankind; and, although you may plead "all things are lawful for me", you will realize that you should not be brought under the power of anything other than God’s will, grace and mercy (1 Cor.6:12). In case you should stumble in anything -- as you inevitably will -- you will find that you become the sharpest critic of your own behavior. You will be very displeased with yourself when you do not live up to the standard for the new child of God you have become as is revealed in the Bible.

That there should be a changed life when a person becomes a believer and follower (disciple) is the context of the process of the discipline (regimentation) instituted by Jesus Christ in Matthew 18:15-17. If a person refuses to behave like a new child of God, or continues his or her old ways, and refuse to repent of his or her ungodly behavior, then he or she must be treated like an unbeliever. Becoming a believer, disciple and follower of Christ means having a transformed mind and now living a changed life. Persistently and willfully living and thinking as the world lives and thinks must surely reveal the true condition of one's heart.

When you become a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, even your understanding of global events will change. You will find yourself not moved or inspired by certain world leaders any longer, realizing that history is HIS-story rather than man's glory -- that whatever comes to pass in all earthly matters happen through His will and express permission.

Everything which you see happening in the world around you will be filtered through your new eyes, and understood according to divinely revealed truth in God’s Holy word, the Bible. Such is the profound change which comes over a person who chooses to believe and follow Jesus Christ. When you continue to be an unbeliever, one who chooses to live as if they are still a part of the world -- you will "speak as of the world" (1 John 4:5), a world that shuns the very God who descended to earth in the form of a man made of flesh, allowing Himself to be crucified to pay for ALL of your sins; those committed before you chose to follow Him, and those lesser ones you will inevitably will experiences as you work your way toward perfection.

None of us will ever achieve perfection until Christ returns to rule and reign on earth forever. And, by virtue of believing in Him, acknowledging that He died on the cross to provide mankind a way to reconnect with God, you then will be destined to rule with Him for eternity as a member of His kingdom. Refusing to believe determines your future. If that remains your ultimate choice, continuing in your unbelieving mindset; and continuing to stay rather amongst the millions who choose to be "of the world" ~ if this is what determines your speech, your outlook on life and your daily behavior, then the choice of where and who you will spend eternity with will be your choice and no one else’s.

After you become a believer in the Jesus Christ, and follow Him and His example, you discover the amazing fact that "old things have passed away; behold, all things are made new"! (2 Corinthians 5:17).

No psychotherapist can produce that.

No medication can cause that.

No fitness course can provide that.

No rituals can induce that.

Becoming a child of God involves a dynamic, supernatural transformation of cosmic proportions which can only be worked out by Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. And he gives us this power, the tools to continue the job of honing, purifying and pruning our lives; a life that can provide a greater service to mankind, rather than to ourselves, which gains nothing without His love, grace and mercy: "His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2 Pet.1:3; cf. Phil.2:12-13; 1 Jn.3:3; Col.3:5; Rom.8:13).

It is my prayer that you will soon come to know this blessed condition, and see it working in our lives. Turning our life over to Christ is not a weakness or a crutch as some proclaim, but rather, it’s reaching out to a greater power source, a more profound jar of wisdom, that will surpass anything we could have imagine before joining a group that will be ruling and sharing in an eternal government never imagined in history.

What is the difference between eternal life and hell?

There are many differences between heaven and hell. The book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, paints a beautiful picture of heaven as having streets of pure gold, gates of pearl, walls decorated with every manner of precious gemstones. Revelation 21:18-21 says, “The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl.

The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.” Nothing impure ever will be in heaven, and the residents shall live eternally in the presence of God and Jesus Christ. It is a place of joy, peace, and love. Jesus Himself has prepared a wonderful place for us. In John 14:1-4, Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you." I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." This is the place the righteous shall go for eternity (John 5:24). 

Hell, on the other hand, is as a lake of fire (Revelations 20:15), the second death (Revelations 21:8), a place where unbelievers will join the Beast and Satan who have been cast there by the victorious Christ, who has finally settled the issue between good and evil, where the conditions will be so horrific that there will be unbearable groaning (realizing you made the wrong decision), a ghoulish wailing and gnashing of teeth (Luke 13:28) the sound of gritting your teeth because you are angry at yourself for not believing those friends of yours who tried to warn you, knowing you will be spending eternity in the home of the wicked (Psalm 9:17) a place of unceasing torment (Revelations 20:10). Hell is basically where those who reject the great sacrifice of Jesus will spend eternity.
What road will you choose to travel on for the rest of your life on earth? One that leads to eternal life, or eternal condemnation?

Please consider this message and hopefully you now understand the real differences!

Joe Ortiz is the author of two books that challenge the Left Behind and Pure-Tribulation Rapture, and premillennial dispensational precepts and doctrines being promoted by many right-wing evangelicals. The two books include The End Times Passover (Etymological Challenges to Millenarian Doctrines) and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation (The Sequel to The End Times Passover), published by Author House. The former talk show host, journalist and news columnist is the first Mexican American to host a show on an English-language, commercial radio station, beginning in 1971 at KABC-AM Radio in Los Angeles. For more information, click on The End Times Passover.

[The following is an article written by news reporter Tony Castro, concerning an effort by the American Jewish Committee's effort to court Hispanic Evangelicals to support Jews and their efforts to enhance the State of Israel's political clout. Following the article are my comments ~ Joe Ortiz]

Jews court Hispanic evangelicals

October 10, 2009
By Tony Castro 

The idea of Francis Siciliano learning Hebrew, studying the Torah and observing Jewish services in a synagogue doesn't seem out of the ordinary on the Westside of Los Angeles.

Except that Siciliano is pastor of a Latino evangelical church in North Hollywood whose lively, born-again Christian services bear a sharp contrast to the ages-old traditions of Judaism.

"To the outsider, it may seem like a case of strange bedfellows," says Siciliano, pastor of Ministerios Fe y Esperanza Church. "Certainly we believe in Christ and what we share is that we believe in the same God they believe in, the maker of heaven and earth.

"That's what the Bible tells us, and we do not believe there is any border separating us and keeping us from being one with the other."

Those are golden words to the American Jewish Committee, the global organization that in recent years has been promoting ties to Hispanic evangelicals and for whom the growing presence and increasing political influence of Latino evangelicals is a treasure trove for securing the future of Israel.

"This is part of our expanding efforts to find common ground, share our cultures and show our love for the state of Israel," said Seth Brysk, Los Angeles regional director of the American Jewish Committee.

As the fastest growing group among an already important political bloc, Latino evangelicals could become a key ally to Israel's cause in Washington, where America's Middle East policy is always a priority for American Jewish organizations.

"Latino evangelicals could well be one of the ways that American Jews help cement a positive U.S. foreign policy position toward Israel in the years to come," says Jorge Garcia, professor of Chicano studies at California State University, Northridge.

On Thursday night, several hundred Latino evangelical ministers and their families waved miniature white and blue Star of David flags in one hand and in the other hand symbols of Sukkot, the eight-day Jewish pilgrimage festival, at Sinai Temple in Westwood.

Earlier, Jewish musicians had serenaded the Latino visitors with songs in Hebrew and Spanish as they feasted on Sukkot foods in the Sukkah, a wooden slat structure built for the holiday.

The Latino evangelicals were there to celebrate the religious event with members of the temple's congregation as part of an ongoing dialogue between both communities.

"We have many things in common," said Tony Solorzano, one of the Los Angeles evangelical ministers at the Sukkot celebration. "(This) program has opened up our community to Jewish culture and people and strengthened our community's commitment to Israel."

Jewish leaders who have organized the dialogue are quick to point out the logic in trying to woo support from Latino evangelicals.

Los Angeles County alone is home to more than 5,500 Latino Pentecostal congregations.

Nationally, at least 8 million Americans identify themselves as Latino evangelicals. Demographic experts estimate that by 2025, Latinos will compose almost 19 percent of the country's population.

A recent survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life and the Pew Hispanic Center also documents a strong allegiance by Latino evangelicals toward Israel.

Some 62 percent of Latino evangelicals support a strong U.S. position in favor of Israel over the Palestinians, the study found, which is almost double the support for Israel among Hispanics generally and even exceeds the support for Israel among non-Hispanic evangelicals.

"Israel was our first home," Aaron Morales, pastor of Christian Adonai Church in Van Nuys, "and it's still our home.

"There is more that unites evangelical Christian and Jews than divides us."

Politically, say experts, Latino evangelicals are a phenomenon of the large missionary work by Protestants in Central America as well as among Hispanics in the U.S. paired with the attention paid all evangelicals during George W. Bush's presidential campaigns.

"They fell in love with this George Bush, man of God defending the family from the allegedly gay agenda, abortion and the additional hook of the faith-based initiatives," said Garcia, the CSUN professor.

"The Jewish community, the Israeli lobby picked up on the fact that here you've got a bloc that they can garner support from, particularly (being) ripe for learning about Judaism because the evangelicals are so scriptural based."

In the last three years, several hundred Latino evangelical pastors have gone through the interfaith, intercultural program that is the brainchild of Randall Brown, director of interreligious and Israel affairs for the American Jewish Committee's Los Angeles chapter.

Brown wanted to bridge the historical gap that has existed between Jews and Hispanics - a gap marked by some degree of anti-Semitism because many Latino immigrants have little exposure to Jews in their native countries.

When he began visiting Latino Pentecostal congregations in Southern California three years ago, Brown said he was surprised by displays of Star-of-David flags, prayers for peace in Israel, and Hebrew in the names of many evangelical churches.

"Many were enamored with Jewish culture," said Brown, a bilingual rabbinical student who began teaching a course in Spanish to Latino evangelical pastors called "Essence of Judaism."

Since that time, Brown has taken three groups of Latino evangelical pastors to Israel and organized Sukkot celebrations between Hispanics and Jews.

Siciliano, among the recent graduates of Brown's program, said he has been passing on what he learned to his congregation and is planning a trip to Israel next year.

"We are pastors who believe in the Bible, of which much is based in Israel, and the God of Israel is our true God as well," says Siciliano. "So we are studying (Judaism) so that we can understand the prophesies, the promises and other important things that we need to know.

"We love Israel because the Bible says that we should love Israel and that we should listen to Israel so that we too can share in its peace." 

Source: Los Angeles Daily News

JoeOrtiz41 said...

The news that the American Jewish Committee is courting Latino evangelicals does not surprise me; it was just a matter of when the wooing would begin. Obviously the emerging political clout of Latinos has become an attractive political resource for the nation of Israel.

I wholeheartedly agree that all peoples, racial and religious groups should have an open dialog and share their respective values. However, my concern is the dilution of the Gospel. Too many evangelicals (of any sort or denomination) believe they have to accept Judaism as part of their doctrinal responsibilities or God is going to punish them. This is not true!

Yes, Christianity has its roots tied to the Old Testament people of Israel; however, the covenant that God established with Abraham was a spiritual one and has nothing to do with racial, ethnic nor cultural traditions. For that matter, the nation or peoples we know today as Israel have nothing to do whatsoever with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, one that has wholeheartedly been (and to this day) rejected by our good Jewish friends in the state of Israel as well as those Jews in the united States and elsewhere. Today's Jews welcome (moral and financial) support from right-wing evangelicals but yet forbid them to proselytize them through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Latino evangelicals should be forewarned that the aggressive recruitment from folks like the Jewish American Committee and other Jewish organizations has nothing to do with their acceptance of the Gospel or any other spiritual agenda, but is rather intended to gain further political clout for Israel's New World Order agenda. The subtle (we love Hispanic evangelical) gesture has a specific purpose but it has nothing to do with them accepting or following Jesus Christ and the soon-to-be-fulfilled Kingdom of God.

Hispanic evangelicals should open up their hearts and welcome our Jewish brethren to our homes and churches, learn about us and our culture, and even hear why we follow Jesus. In return, Hispanic evangelicals should help those in the Jewish community who need medical attention, economic and moral support, especially in their efforts to seek a peaceful solution to the chasm between the state of Israel and their Palestinian neighbors. But, most certainly not to advance any political mission that would lead to the establishment of a New World Order agenda.

Until our Jewish friends and the state of Israel (as is stated in Romans 11:23) adopts a belief in Jesus Christ, there is no religious nor scriptural commonality whatsoever between Jews and Hispanic evangelicals, nor any believers in Christ. 

But, there can be, if they will only believe!

Joe Ortiz, author
"The End Times Passover" (Author House)
"Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation" (Author House) and 

"Saved? What Do you Mean Saved? (GBM BOOKS)

October 13, 2009 at 10:56 AM