Remembering God's Promises

 Remembering the Promise to David

 Book of Psalms: Psalm 132

 This is another Psalm that was sung as the Israelites traveled to Jerusalem for the Feast’s days as commanded by God.

They had begun to remember the promises of God and it brought joy to them just as it does to each of us.

 If we take a look into David's past, we will see all the pains, the trouble, and anxiety he underwent in his lifetime for the cause of God, especially in the establishing a sanctuary in Jerusalem and making preparation for the building of the Temple.

 David was building God's special dwelling place on this Earth, a place where God would meet with His people.

 If you do not have a longing to meet with God, then you cannot be a Christian!

 You cannot be a Christian because the Holy Spirit will not come to live within you!

 Every Christian is a sanctuary for God to dwell in!

 If we look at the very first word of this Psalm, we see the word LORD, this is the Almighty God Himself, Jehovah.

 David had accomplished what no lowly shepherd could accomplish.

David rose from a lowly shepherd to become King of Israel.

 Except we do know of another man who was a shepherd who came to save His people, and His name is Jesus the Christ, the Messiah.

 We know that special days are set aside to honor special people and some of the heroes of our nation.

 In fact, almost every nation has set days to remember their national heroes.

 For the Israelites, David was a hero and in fact, David is still honored as one of the Jews greatest heroes.

 The Star of David is the national flag of Israel today.

 The "Sling of David" is the name of one of the air defense systems of Israel.

 This Psalm was probably written for the dedication of the Temple built by Solomon.

 We know that David had spent many years gathering the wealth to build a magnificent Home for God, when He would come to visit this planet, but we know that God is everywhere, and He even abides in every "Born Again" child of God.

 He lives in every person who has their name written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.

 Rev 21:2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 

 Rev 21:27  And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. 

 David was now dead and gone, we know He is with the Lord, but the Jews had a great fondness for King David.

 By remembering the hardships David faced before he was made king, it inspired the Jews to face their own hardships!

 It has never been easy to live in this world since the sin of Adam, and it is not always easy to be a Christian.

 We do still live in a cursed world!

 The word cursed is used seventy-two times in the Bible.

 We know that the Serpent who was Satan is cursed:

 Gen_3:14  And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

 Gen_3:17  And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

 If you look up the word cursed in the Bible, you will see that many of our leaders of today are cursed by their actions.

 Deu_27:25  Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say, Amen.

 We know we have been sold out by our leaders for riches, they will never spend.

 We know that every doctor who is paid to end the life of an innocent baby is also cursed.

 God has also placed a curse on all those who reject any part of the Scriptures:

 Deu_27:26  Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen.

 And to all those so-called churches that have left the truth of the Bible, God says:

 Jer_11:3  And say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Cursed be the man that obeyeth not the words of this covenant,

Jer_17:5  Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.

 God is very serious about the words He has given us to live by.

 Let's begin.

 *****Psa 132:1  A Song of degrees. LORD, remember David, and all his afflictions: 

Psa 132:2  How he sware unto the LORD, and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob; 

Psa 132:3  Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house, nor go up into my bed; 

Psa 132:4  I will not give sleep to mine eyes, or slumber to mine eyelids, 

Psa 132:5  Until I find out a place for the LORD, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob.

 The Psalmist who wrote this Psalm reminded the Lord how David was devoted to Him.

 We all say these things such as, “Lord remember me”.

 The truth is that God only forgets when He decides to forget.

His memory is perfect!

 He has forgotten our sins, and it is He that said we are covered by the blood of Jesus that has washed away our sins.

 Rev_1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

 We know that King David had made a vow to find a place for the Almighty God to dwell in Jerusalem.

 David was determined that He was going to build a House for God for God to dwell in Jerusalem.

 This was David's vow.

 David had endured much suffering at the hands of Saul.

David had endured much suffering in finding a neutral place to worship God.

David had not yet taken Jerusalem from the Jebusites so, this too had to be done.

David had to transport the "Ark of the Congregation “ to this new House of God, but it was not in his hands at this time.

David had to also defend Jerusalem from the attacks of the Philistines two times, while all these other things were going on.

 These things may have hindered David in completing his vow to God, but it did not stop Him.

 In fact, David said; I'm not going to rest until I build a House for the Lord.

 David said it was not right that he was living in a beautiful palace and worshiping God in a tent.

 We can see that David's devotion to God provides a worthy example for us to follow.

 Many missionaries today have this same vision as David, to build a house for the worship of our God.

 I believe Nathan had this vision and I believe Scott David had this vision.

 These were church planters as David wanted to be.

 *****Psa 132:6  Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah: we found it in the fields of the wood. 

Psa 132:7  We will go into his tabernacles: we will worship at his footstool. 

Psa 132:8  Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy strength. 

Psa 132:9  Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy saints shout for joy. 

Psa 132:10  For thy servant David's sake turn not away the face of thine anointed. 

 Though this Scripture is hard to understand, what we do know is that David found the Ark of the Covenant and moved it to Jerusalem where it would remain until 70 AD when Titus destroyed Jerusalem.

 At this time nobody really knows the whereabouts of the Ark!

 These people recalled the passion of David to obtain the Ark and bring it to Jerusalem where he intended to build a House for God.

 The Ark had been gone so long that many people had forgotten about it.

It was David who had to remind the people:

 1Ch 13:2  And David said unto all the congregation of Israel, If it seem good unto you, and that it be of the LORD our God, let us send abroad unto our brethren every where, that are left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the priests and Levites which are in their cities and suburbs, that they may gather themselves unto us: 

1Ch 13:3  And let us bring again the ark of our God to us: for we enquired not at it in the days of Saul. 

1Ch 13:4  And all the congregation said that they would do so: for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. 

 The people thought the Ark was in Ephratah, but Bethlehem and Kirjath-Jearim were both known as Bethlehem at this time.

 There is the city of Bethlehem but there is also the region which was called Bethlehem.

It was Bethlehem Ephratah that provided the sheep for the Temple.

 Rth 4:11  And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:

 Mic 5:2  But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. 

 Kirjath-Jearim would be the place that was in the woods!

 We know that David failed the in his first attempt to retrieve the Ark, but he succeeded when He retrieved it according to the Word of God.

 We will always fail if we do not do things according to the proven ways of God!

 It is easy to see how this Scripture can be applied to the Lord Jesus Christ.

 If King David did not have the zeal for the Lord that he had, we do not know if anyone would have remembered the Ark of God.

 David challenged the people to get back to the worship of Jehovah God.

 David referred to the Ark as the Lord's footstool.

 1Ch 28:2  Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said, Hear me, my brethren, and my people: As for me, I had in mine heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and for the footstool of our God, and had made ready for the building: 

1Ch 28:3  But God said unto me, Thou shalt not build an house for my name, because thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed blood. 

 Psa 99:5  Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy. 

 The world knows nothing about the Holiness of God and many in the Church have also.

 Rom 6:22  But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 

 David built a tent for the Ark of the Covenant, but he must have also built a place where the people could gather to worship though many of them and the priests still went to the Tabernacle that was in Gibeon, but did not have the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy Place.

 The reality of these things is that God will sit on the throne of David in Jerusalem.

 1) The Ark is not only a symbol of God's presence, but it is also a symbol of God's power!

 2) The priests that serve the Lord will be godly servants and agents of righteousness!

 3) The saints of God will be a happy people.

 4) God would not reject David's anointed successor. Solomon would be the next king, but these things also make reference to God's truly anointed which is the Lord Jesus Christ.

 Today we worship together in a building set up for worship.

 It is the people that are the Church.

 The building or the place that we worship is just that, a building or a place.

 We should never defile our bodies with the sins of the flesh.

We must obey the commands of God which say we are to separate ourselves from all unrighteousness and ungodliness.

 2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 

2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. 

 Today, God is still searching for people like David who love to worship Him.

 Joh 4:21  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 

Joh 4:22  Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 

Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 

Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 

 We must be wholly devoted to the Lord!

 Next we will see some of the promises made to David.

 *****Psa 132:11  The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne. 

Psa 132:12  If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, their children shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore.

 There is no greater promise of the Lord Jesus Christ than this.

 This verse points to the Messiah and His Kingdom!

 Psa 89:3  I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, 

Psa 89:4  Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah. 

 Psa 89:35  Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.

 2Sa 7:28  And now, O Lord GOD, thou art that God, and thy words be true, and thou hast promised this goodness unto thy servant: 

2Sa 7:29  Therefore now let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee: for thou, O Lord GOD, hast spoken it: and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever. 

 The thing we know is true is, that a descendant of David will occupy the throne in Jerusalem.

 That throne is the government, and that government will be located in Jerusalem and the Messiah will rule the world from Jerusalem.

 There were some conditions to be met for each descendant of David.

 We should clearly understand that our unfaithfulness cannot defeat God's purpose and neither could those sons of David who rejected the truth of God.

 We know that God will keep His oaths, and He expects us to keep ours!

 It is Jehovah God who chose Jerusalem when He could have chosen anywhere.

 King Jesus will rule from Jerusalem.

 *****Psa 132:13  For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation. 

Psa 132:14  This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it. 

 We know that some of the descendants of David turned from God and He had to discipline them.

 The Israelites would be singing this Psalm as they traveled toward Jerusalem.

 We know for a time there was no son of David sitting on the throne in Jerusalem, the fulfillment of the promises had been interrupted and it will stay that way until King Jesus takes control of the governments that remain in this world from Jerusalem.

 God's promise will be fulfilled, and the world is moving toward that moment when the Messiah will return.

 The promise will be fulfilled in two stages:

 1) Jesus Christ returns and rules the entire earth from Jerusalem for one thousand years.

 Jer 3:17  At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. 

 2) When Christ Jesus takes us to New Jerusalem and reigns from there forever and ever.

 Rev 22:3  And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: 

Rev 22:4  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

 God promises to provide abundantly for those who are now His people.

 *****Psa 132:15  I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread. 

Psa 132:16  I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy. 

 I believe this speaks of the point when the Jews will join the Church.

 God will provide any and all needs to His children.

 The poor will not lack food and necessities as they had on Earth. These are material needs.

 Mat 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

 Then God will supply their Spiritual needs.

 In verse nine we see that it was a prayer that asked the Lord for the priests be clothed in righteousness.

 Psa 132:9  Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy saints shout for joy. 

 We see in verse sixteen that God has answered that prayer.

 I still believe that this is the Jews as they have now joined the Church, and all the saints will shout with joy for the Church is now complete and the Bride of Christ can join with the Bridegroom.

 *****Psa 132:17  There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed. 

Psa 132:18  His enemies will I clothe with shame: but upon himself shall his crown flourish. 

The Lord promised to make the horn of David to sprout.

To sprout means to bud to spring forth and grow.

The “horn” is a symbol of power.

This phrase means that a powerful ruler will come forth from the line of David and this ruler will fulfill all the promises made to David.

He will be a lamp or a light to all the world!

The “lamp” and that “horn” mean the Messiah.

1) Zec 6:13  Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. 

2) Jer 33:15  In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. 

3) Isa 49:6  And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. 

Zacharias the father of John the Baptist said: 

Luk 1:69  And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David. 

Luk 1:79  To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. 

We know what is going on in Israel today is turbulent times for them.

We need to remember these promises of God to David, and they will be fulfilled.

As far as the Church, we need to pray for the peace of Jerusalem which will take place at the return of Jesus Christ.

We know that the conclusion of God's plan may be nearing its end, and we will live forever in the presence of the Mighty God!

All evilness and wickedness will be gone, and we will finally be at peace on New Earth and the New Jerusalem. 

Amen

The True Church

 Receivers and Responders

Book of 1 Thessalonians Chapter 1

We go from the Books of James written by James the half-brother of the Lord to the writings of the Apostle Paul but Paul assured us that we know that it was the Holy Spirit who directed all the Scriptures.

Every chapter, every verse, every word given to us by the Holy Spirit are to make the Church to be strong.

The world will claim every building with a steeple is a church but we know only those groups of true believers make up the true Church.

The Church is not a building, the Church is all those who are trying to follow in the ways of the Lord Jesus Christ and His truths!

The true Church has Preachers and Pastors who are faithful to the true Church by remaining faithful to the truth of the Word of God.

A strong church is a church that has accepted the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, the true Messiah, the same Messiah who will return to first take His children home and then deal with this wicked world and complete the promises He has made to Israel.

The true church is founded on the oneness of God in His three persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

There is no true church if that congregation does not accept the trinity of God!

*****1Th 1:1  Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

If we cannot understand the truth of this scripture then we do not understand the Love of God!

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 

Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

All other places that gather together are not part of the true Church unless they accept this truth!

They are only a man-created gathering, no matter what they call themselves!

The Lord was discussing this with His disciples before He was crucified.

Mat 16:15  He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 

Mat 16:16  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 

Mat 16:17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 

Mat 16:18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 

Now the Church is not built upon Peter but the fact that the Lord Jesus is indeed the Messiah, the Son of the Living God!

The true Church possesses God gifts of "Grace" and "Peace".

We know that "Grace" is the sum of all the blessings that God the father bestows on us through Jesus Christ. Grace is God's love and favor to us who are certainly undeserving of it!

We know that our Lord Jesus by God's "grace" is the death of His Son for all believers, in fact for all sinners.

We should know that peace is more than the absence of hostility and disorder: it also denotes good health and harmony with nature, and inward wellbeing.

This peace came through the blood of the cross.

Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 

Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 

Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 

Eph 2:17  And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. 

Eph 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. 

The peace comes only by God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit gives us these words of truth.

Paul as a Church builder never departed from this truth about our Savior but built upon it, just as we are to do today.

Silas and Timothy were with Paul when the Church at Thessalonica was established and the Holy Spirit always showed that Paul was not alone and that he traveled with others who had the same faith that he had.

Again we will see that prayers are the strength of the Church.

*****1Th 1:2  We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; 

1Th 1:3  Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; 

A strong Church is a praying church!

A true Church is one whose prayers reach into the throne room of God!

Mat 21:22  And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. 

It is our duty to be thankful for the personal benefits we receive from God but notice it is better to be thankful for the good of others.

Paul knew his own strength came because of all those churches praying for his success.

We need to pray for all the missions of our church because they need those prayers and we will still receive those benefits from God.

Our prayers must be a work of our faith or they are useless!

Remember what we learned from James, "faith without works is a dead faith".

We show our love to Christ by what we do for Him willingly!

We must take prayer seriously because it is the power behind the true Church!

Our faith in Jesus Christ will stir us up to do a work for God.

The stronger our faith, the more we can accomplish in the name of our Lord Jesus!

We must never get over the fact that we have been saved from a burning Hell!

Just as faith stirs the Church to do a work of God, "love" stirs the Church to labor, or we would say to get busy serving the Lord.

We know this work can be tiring but when we do get to rest, we will rest satisfied that we are working in the name of our Savior.

One day that true rest will come and our labor on this earth will be over.

Our faith works, our love labors, our hope patiently suffers all things!

We should remember our rewards come from the labor we have done in this life.

*****1Th 1:4  Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.

What does this election mean?

1) Election means that we as believers are elected and chosen by God to be His beloved people.

God has called each of us out of this world and away from our old life of sin and eternal death.

Being in the will of God means we are now separate and set apart for God's use!

2) Election means we as Christians are all in the same family because we have the same Father.

We are all brothers and sisters in Christ and we are to hold each believer close to our hearts.

We are family because of our faith.

1Jn 3:1  Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. 

1Jn 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 

When we look upon another Christian, we must see them as an object of God's love!

We are all brethren because we are all the object of God's "Grace".

When visitors come into our Church, they should be able to see that our members act like the beloved of God.

They should see clearly that each member treats each other member as the beloved brethren of God.

The "Gospel" is not just a bunch of words written down on paper!

*****1Th 1:5  For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

1Th 1:6  And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: 

What is the greatest trait of the Christian? We believe the Word of God and it is this language that we speak. It is the language of Heaven!

The "Gospel" came in power! Not miraculously but persuasively because it came from the heart of God.

The "Gospel" came to us by the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of Truth.

When Paul preached, he was not concerned if he were a good preacher or not.

When Paul preached his only concern was sharing the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only in these terms that the Holy Spirit can do His work of conviction.

God honors His Word and His Word only!

If we do not believe the Word of God is from Heaven, then we cannot stand before any group in the power of God!

Even as teachers we have no power unless the Holy Spirit is with us and He will not be with us if we have no faith in God's truth!

Those that believe that our creation came in the process of evolution, have no power.

Those that believe that we are not to teach against sin as described in the Bible, have no power.

Those that believe that the Word of God is not the complete truth, have no power.

Those that say the Jesus is not the Messiah who is coming again, have no power.

The truth of God must be taught by example!

Those that are chosen of God are the same ones who have accepted the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The "Gospel" cannot be received without joy!

Our afflictions come by some man, but our joy comes by the Holy Spirit!

The "Gospel" will always bear fruit!

We must all guard our lives to be sure we are following in the ways of the Lord Jesus Christ.

*****1Th 1:7  So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. 

1Th 1:8  For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing. 

How were these Thessalonians examples of the Apostle Paul?

In their faith.

In their hope.

In their brotherly love.

In their good works.

We must not get caught up in what will people think of us!

It is not a terrible thing to be seen as a peculiar people!

The Church at Thessalonica became an example to other believers.

The new established church was so committed to the Lord Jesus Christ that their testimony spread all over Greece and then all over the known world.

This shows us that the Lord will use us if we just given Him control through the Holy Spirit.

This church was not afraid to show their faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We must understand that if we do not have the Spirit of Jesus Christ in us, then we do not belong to Christ!

Rom_8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Having the Spirit of Christ in us will show up in our daily life.

This is one of the greatest testimonies of witnessing in all the Bible.

Our greatest work we can show to those around us is that work for Jesus Christ.

Rom 10:17  So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 

Rom 10:18  But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. 

When we speak with the voice of the Lord, His message will spread everywhere.

Psa 29:4  The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. 

When we do not speak with the voice of the Lord then we are not in the will of God!

When our church does not speak with the voice of the Lord, then we need to close the doors of the church and go home because we are not who we say we are!

*****1Th 1:9  For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; 

The world sees the Bible as just a book of fables as they serve their idols of this world.

The Christian sees the Bible as the revelations of the True and Living God who lives in Heaven.

Jer 10:10  But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. 

Jer 10:11  Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.

Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 

Once we have accepted the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, then we have turned from the idols of the world to the True and Living God.

This is the time we begin standing on the truth of the "Gospel".

We might try to clean our lives up by ourselves but we will find this is impossible. We cannot reform ourselves!

We cannot turn away from idols and seek God.

We must turn to God first and then with God's help and God's strength we can repent and turn away from idols.

It is after we accept the truth of the Gospel that we can repent and be baptized.

Idols are dead images of some imaginary beings, but my Savior, My God is alive and will never die!

Conversion means we have turned completely around.

We begin to hate the things we loved and love the things we hated.

Conversion is to turn to God distinctly by an act and deed of our mind and our will because we see the truth of creation.

We begin to see that there is a purpose to our being on this earth.

This lost world will worship anything and those who say this is not true worship themselves and this is the worst of all false worship.

Every person has an opinion of what God is and what God is like and what God allows and what God does not allow.

The lost world will take these ideas and make themselves an imaginary god out of wood, or silver, or gold, or some other object of this world.

Others just have a picture in their minds of what a god should be.

Some have made this planet to be their god.

Others have made the stars or some alien to be their god.

So an idol is any image created in the mind of man other than the God who gave us the Scriptures that reveal the truth.

Rom 1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 

Rom 1:22  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 

Rom 1:23  And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 

Many of those in Greece had heard of the man Jesus and knew the truth of His crucifixion but were acceptable of His resurrection, but when they heard of His return they sought Him out for the truth.

You see, it is God's Son who is returning to earth, the One who died for us all.

We that know the Lord want to be acceptable to Him and live with Him forever.

This is the reason we are waiting upon the return of Jesus Christ so we can go home and leave this wicked world behind.

Joh 14:2  In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 

Joh 14:4  And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 

*****1Th 1:10  And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. 

How do we know that the Lord Jesus is coming to take us home?

Because God raised Him up from the dead.

By resurrecting Christ Jesus God proved he is the God of all power and not some imaginary God.

God proved He has the power to raise all the dead in Christ.

God proved that He is going to do everything that the Lord Jesus has taught us.

The truth; God will raise some to eternal life but some will be raised to eternal death.

Eternal death is to be separated from the Living God for eternity, which is what they wanted and strived for, but it will be a terrible thing.

By turning to the Living God we will escape the wrath of God that is coming to this world.

Since all the world has now turned against Israel, including my own nation we can see that this day of God's wrath is very close.

Gen_12:3  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

The USA has just come under the curse of God by the works of administration that is in office today.

God will reward those who are in rebellion to His Word with eternal death!

The world is already condemned but all those who turn to God in any nation from idols that are all imaginary can still be saved.

I can assure you that you do not want to see the wrath of an angry God toward those who reject His Son!

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 

Rom 1:19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 

Amen

The Sin Debt of the World is Paid

 The Servant's Sacrifice

Book of Mark Chapter 15

The Lord Jesus Christ will die on that cross on this day that began when the Lord Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The Sanhedrin Court met in the wee hours of the morning to finalize the charges against Jesus Christ on this day.

These charges had to be strong enough to convince the Romans, so false witnesses were used.

The only charge that would work would be the charge of insurrection in which Rome could condemn Jesus to death.

They said that Jesus had claimed to be King of the Jews, which He had not because it was not time for this to be true.

Some of His disciples had used the term but not Jesus.

Pilate was the procurator of Judea.

Notice Rome still used the term Judea and Rome only changed the name of Judea to Palestinia just to get back at the Jews.

Without this change by Rome there would be no area called Palestine and no people referred to as Palestinians.

Most of these so-called people follow the teachings of the Muslim Brotherhood and this is why no other Muslim nations want them in their nation.

There has never been a nation called Palestine.

Judaea was a Roman province from 6 to 132 CE, which incorporated the Levantine regions of Judea, Samaria and Idumea, extending over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms of Judea. 

The name Judaea was derived from the Iron Age Kingdom of Judah.

It included what is now called Gaza and what is called the West Bank.

This is the land that has always belonged to Israel since the time of Moses.

Pilate despised the Jews and the Jews despised Pilate.

When Pilate first rode into Jerusalem he came showing the Roman Standard, with an eagle setting atop a pole.

All previous governors had removed the eagle because of the Jews opposition to idols but Pilate despised the Jews did many things to cause turmoil.

This is what being dominated by a foreign power means!

Pilate launched the construction of a new water supply which was needed but he stole the money for the project out of the Temple treasury.

The Jews never forgave him for these things but they set these things aside in order to murder the Lord Jesus Christ.

They needed the cooperation of Pilate to get this done!

Pilate was a weak and immoral man!

Pilate was indecisive and he rejected the Lord Jesus despite convincing evidence of His innocence.

The major charge against the Lord Jesus was that He claimed to be king of the Jews.

Everyone knew that Herod was a false king appointed to the throne by Rome.

Pilate noted that the Lord Jesus did not dress as a king.

Jesus was humble and meek in His appearance.

Jesus had no supporters or followers who could make Him king.

Jesus dressed as a peasant with no means to dress as royalty.

Pilate surmised, "how could this man be a king of any country"?

Jesus said, "what you say is true".

Mar 15:2  And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it. 

But Jesus said He was not a king of this earth.

Joh 18:36  Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. 

Joh 18:37  Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. "Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice". 

Pilate compromised and he offered up Barabbas as a substitute, but the Jewish religious leaders and the Jewish elders convinced the crowd of that day to choose to crucify the Lord Jesus.

Most all the people did not know this was going on as it was done in the night hours and so early in the day.

We should understand that God will never compromise when it concerns His Son Jesus.

It was the religionist who swayed the people to choose Barabbas and not Christ!

Just as we see today, men who are set upon evil will try their best to influence others in order to get their way.

Morally weak men are just too weak to act justly and responsibly.

This is the theme of a certain political party today as they are morally weak men and women.

We also see this today not only in our government but in the false church.

We see this also in the war going on in Israel today.

That terrorists group called Hamas are morally weak men and truly cowards, how could we expect them act differently than they do?

It was a big deal to them that they could overpower babies and people who could not defend themselves!

This is the same thing those who profess abortion do every day.

They are really brave when they confront those who cannot defend themselves!

We are fools if we ever allow our nation to take away our defensive weapons!

Pilate could not do what was right because it went against his character!

Pilate was a man who would always give in to worldly pressure to keep his position in government!

The death of the Lord Jesus Christ upon that cross was the most phenomenal event in history, in fact the most crucial point in world history.

Eternal salvation for all men and women was secured by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on Mount Calvary.

We can see that it was the providence of God to have the right people in place at the precise time in history, for this thing to take place!

Pilate’s soldiers first abused Jesus.

They put upon Jesus the robes of royalty and then took them back off of Him.

They stripped Him of His clothes to do this.

The Jews considered it a great sin to show yourself naked from the time of Adam and Eve and the teachings of Moses.

We can see the actions of Pilate's soldiers were almost as depraved as those men who call themselves Hamas but even, they can be forgiven if that would turn to Christ and repent.

God will not allow men to mock Him for very long!

We can see that this world has not changed very much it its attitude toward the Lord Jesus Christ.

When Simon of Cyrene bore the cross of Jesus it was a picture of conversion.

We are all to pick up our own cross and follow the Lord Jesus Christ.

Luk 9:23  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 

Simon of Cyrene was a changed man after this thing that he was forced to do!

Our lesson begins with the place that Our Lord Jesus was crucified.

*****Mar 15:22  And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. 

Golgotha was known as a place of death long before the Lord Jesus was crucified there.

The Lord Jesus died just like everyone else who had been crucified upon that hill.

The name Golgotha means the place of the skull, the place of death, the place of execution.

It was a place outside the gates of the city but it was still near the city.

Heb 13:12  Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. 

Joh 19:20  This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. 

It was located on a thoroughfare leading into the country and there was a garden at that same location.

Luk 23:26  And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. 

Joh 19:41  Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. 

It was this place, a symbol of death, where God chose that His Son would die to deliver all mankind from the bondage of death!

*****Mar 15:23  And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. 

It was the Lord Jesus Himself who refused to take this drug concoction. 

The Lord Jesus wanted to feel the pains of death at its bitterest moment!

This mixture of alcohol and drugs was intended to ease the pain of death much like what is done in the hospices of today.

Jesus would have no part in it because the Lord Jesus was on a mission!

Heb 2:14  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 

Heb 2:15  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 

The Lord Jesus died for our deliverance from death!

Men who had witnessed death so many times had no concern for the property of that one who was to die.

*****Mar 15:24  And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. 

The Lord Jesus was laid upon that cross.

That arms of our Savior were stretched as far as they could be on the cross beam and His feet were nailed as were His hands and He was lifted and with a jolt that cross was dropped into a hole snapping His joints into but breaking no bones.

Psa_22:14  I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels.

Mary, the mother of Jesus was standing at the foot of the cross, but these soldiers showed no compassion whatsoever in giving her His belongings but gambled to see would get them.

The Lord Jesus wore a particular robe that was knitted without seams.

The Lord Jesus had been stripped of His clothing again exposing Him naked to the world in an attempt to convince the world that this was just a man and not the promised Messiah.

The Lord Jesus allowed His mortality to be stripped from Him so that He might abolish death and bring life and immortality to light.

2Ti 1:10  But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: 

*****Mar 15:25  And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. 

The Lord Jesus Christ was crucified at 9 AM, (the third hour) and the darkness swept across the land from 12 noon until 3 PM (the sixth until the ninth hour).

God the Father demonstrated His great love for us, not sparing His Son, but allowing Him to die for the sin of all mankind.

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

We know that Pilate had a sign placed over the head of Jesus which said "the King of the Jews" in three languages.

We know that there were two thieves who were placed one on each side of our Savior.

Isa 53:12  Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. 

Then there was the mob of those who made mockery of our Lord who congregated at the foot of the cross.

There was the mockery of the two thieves.

1Pe 2:23  Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: 

1Pe 2:24  Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. 

Then the sixth hour brought darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.

It was ninth hour that the Lord Jesus cried out to His Heavenly Father this time saying, “My God" "My God" know that because of our sin, not His, he had none, that His Father had forsaken Him for a moment in time.

This is sure proof that for a moment in time the Lord Jesus was forsaken by His Heavenly Father. His Father became His God!

*****Mar 15:34  And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

The Lord Jesus Christ cried out because He had never been separated from His Heavenly Father.

For a moment in time the Lord Jesus was just as guilty in sin as we all are, in fact more so because He carried the sin of all the world.

Jesus did not mean the suffering and the terrible treatment He had received on that cross!

We need a clear understanding of what the Lord Jesus means here.

1) The Lord Jesus sensed that God had withdrawn His presence from Him. He sensed that God was no longer with Him!

2) The Lord Jesus sensed that God had withdrawn His deliverance. God had always met His need but Jesus now felt alone for the first time!

3) The Lord Jesus sensed that He was bearing the "curse" of God by Himself.

 The curse of being separated from God.

The curse of judgment.

The curse of condemnation.

Gal 3:13  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 

Gal 3:14  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Heb 9:26  For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. 

4) Jesus sensed that God's holiness had left Him.

Both sin and death are things that God had never felt. God had only known life and holiness!

Psa 22:1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? 

Psa 22:3  But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. 

For a moment in time, the Lord Jesus Christ had to bear the sin for mankind, therefore He had to bear the penalty of separation from a perfect and holy God!

2Co 5:20  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. 

2Co 5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. 

The only thing that could have caused God the Father to separate Himself from Christ Jesus, His Son, was sin!

Isa 59:2  But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. 

It was "our sin", the sin of the entire world, which caused this to happen because the Lord Jesus Christ had no sin of His own!

*****Mar 15:35  And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias. 

Mar 15:36  And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. 

It was out of total darkness that the Lord Jesus had cried out and many of those standing at the foot of the cross had gotten confused and others just began to mock Him.

Someone just wanted to see if some remarkable thing were about to happen because they did not understand any of these things and they could not understand what was taking place.

The ground is level at the foot of the cross, but there must come an understanding of what the Lord Jesus Christ had accomplished.

The Lord Jesus had fulfilled the first part of His mission to provide a means of salvation for all believers!

The Age of Grace had begun for the believer, and the Age of the Curse had begun for the unbeliever!

The Lord Jesus was not calling out to Elijah, who was just a man, but now was a saint of God.

Then the Lord Jesus said that He was thirsty in a pitiful cry.

One man who had compassion of the Lord tried to give the Lord a drink.

Joh 19:28  After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. 

Joh 19:29  Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. 

Joh 19:30  When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. 

This time Jesus was offered water with just enough vinegar in it to kill the parasites in the water.

This is the way the Romans purified the water they drank in any nation where they were located.

It is also true that Elijah will return before the return of Christ, but not at that time.

The Lord Jesus Christ died at this time; His work completed but some other things happened that we also need to understand.

*****Mar 15:37  And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 

Mar 15:38  And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. 

Mar 15:39  And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. 

The Lord had been timid when He asked for water, but He is now bold as He completes the work He came to accomplish.

This was a glorious triumph over the acts of the Devil.

The Lord Jesus Christ died for a specific purpose!

The Lord Jesus Christ did not die a martyr, He gave His life for all of mankind to be saved.

He gave up the Ghost, which means that He willingly gave His life and His Spirit so that we can be saved.

While the body of Jesus lay in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, He was busy with a few other important things in His Spirit.

On the cross and after His death:

1Pe 3:19  By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; 

1Pe 3:20  Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

After His death:

Eph 4:8  Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 

Eph 4:9  (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 

Eph 4:10  He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 

The Lord Jesus Christ died at 3 PM and His body had to be buried before 6 PM by Jewish law.

The veil of the Temple was rent into from the top to the bottom, not the bottom to the top.

This showed that it was God who had done this thing and not some man or group of men.

This now meant that there would be unrestricted access into God's presence, into the throne room of God.

This is the curtain which separated the Holy of Holies from the Holy Place, the most sacred part of the Temple.

Up until this time, only the High priest could go beyond this curtain and this only one time a year on the Day of Atonement.

At the very hour of the death of Christ, the High Priest was rolling back the outer curtain in order to expose the Holy Place for worship and they were amazed when they saw the inner veil was torn right down the middle from the top to the bottom.

Being torn from top to bottom means that it was God Himself who had ripped this veil.

Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 

Now through the body of Christ, any believer can enter into the presence of God, at any time and at any place.

Heb 10:10  By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

With all the things that happened, the Roman Centurion in charge of the crucifixion of Christ realized that the Lord Jesus Christ was indeed the true Messiah!

This man was a Gentile and in type, he symbolized all those who would confess the Lord Jesus in the coming generations.

Rom 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 

Rom 10:10  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 

Because of what is going on in Israel today we may be at the end of the time of Grace which began with the resurrected Christ.

Amen

The Passover That Saved Our Souls

 The Pain of God's Servant

Book of Mark Chapter 14

As we open up chapter 14 in the Book of Mark, we see that Our Lord Jesus will be facing His last day before His murder on Mount Calvary.

Mark first mentions the Jewish Passover because the Passover was the time that a sacrificial lamb would be slaughtered in order for sin to be forgiven for one year.

But if the right sacrifice were offered then this forgiveness could be forever.

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 

Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. 

Heb 9:13  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: 

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

Heb 9:15  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. 

Heb 9:16  For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. 

Heb 9:17  For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth. 

Some perfect man had to die in payment for our sin or we all would be held accountable for our own sin, and we are all guilty of sin!

Heb_10:4  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

This is why the Lord Jesus came to this earth, to die in sacrifice for all sin from the time of Adam until last human to be born.

We next see that the chief priests and the scribes, the religionists, are plotting to murder the Lord Jesus Christ not realizing that He came to die.

The murder of the Lord Jesus was premeditated murder, but the sacrifice of Jesus was by the hand of God!

We also know it is the religionists of today who are plotting the downfall, the murder of the true Church!

Mark ties the death of Jesus Christ to the Passover, for the Lord Jesus Christ is our Passover!

1Co_5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. "For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us":

The same people in the streets, who were openly preparing to praise God and their religious leaders, were now hiding in darkness preparing to kill God!

These religionists had been exposed by Jesus and they hated Him for it, even when it was the truth.

The things Jesus spoke of were always true!

We see many of these same things today!

Those who serve Satan are always plotting to murder the followers of Christ and the Jews!

All religions are corrupt and they hate the true Christian for pointing this out to the world.

It is many false, so-called, Christians who are ruining the testimony of the Church!

False preachers are also being pointed out and they are even turning on the true Church!

In this chapter we see Mary, in the house of Simon the leper, who showed true love to our Savior by anointing Him with oil and washing His feet with her tears and drying them with her hair.

The Lord Jesus rewarded Mary by making sure all those who read the Word of God would know of the thing she had done for Him.

Mar 14:9  Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her. 

We see where the heart of Judas Iscariot had turned to his own pocketbook, rather than to the Lord.

Judas went to betray Him!

Mar 14:10  And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them. 

This fit right into the plan to murder our Savior, but it also fit right into the plan of God for our salvation.

This anointing of Jesus points us toward His burial, His death.

Mar 14:8  She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. 

It is fact that the Lord Jesus Christ had to die to save the believers of this world! 

The Lord Jesus did die for all mankind, but it must be believed!

We must understand that when jealousy and envy enter into our hearts, we had better find a way to deal with them before they fester into major sin!

Judas had convinced himself that he had been mistaken about Jesus, and He could not be the true Messiah if He came to die.

These are the thoughts of false religion!

Many say a God who could die would be weak and could not be much of a God, yet the grave of Jesus is still empty and the graves of all false messiahs are still full of their bones.

We know that the Lord Jesus gave Judas every chance to repent, but he could not find repentance in his heart.

In this same chapter we have the Lord's Supper.

The Lord Jesus took the bread and divided it among all His disciples.

This bread symbolized the death of Christ!

His body was so broken by the things the Lord went through, but not one of His bones were broken.

He gave the bread to His disciples to eat.

"Take, eat this is my body"  This means we are to take and receive Christ into our life.

Next, He took the cup.

The bread and the cup are to remind us that Jesus gave His life freely, no one could take the life of Christ!

Jesus gave thanks and He thanked God the Father for forgiveness knowing God the Father would deliver Him through His sacrifice.

It is the same for each believer who will be delivered through the sacrifice of the true and perfect Messiah.

He gave the cup to all the disciples showing that we all must partake of the blood of Jesus, if we are to live eternally with Him in His Father's house.

Jesus identified His blood as the blood of the New Testament!

These things accomplished our Lord wanted to sing.

One day soon the Lord may allow us the privilege of singing along with Him.

*****Mar 14:26  And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. 

No doubt that Jesus sung with the voice of happiness and the voice of salvation.

God was singing to and with His disciples.

It is believed they sang these hymns from the Book of Psalms, in celebration of the great hope which God gives us in His deliverance and His salvation.

Psa 113:1  Praise ye the LORD. Praise, O ye servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD. 

Psa 113:2  Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. 

Psa 115:3  But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. 

Psa 116:1  I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. 

Psa 116:2  Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live. 

Psa 116:3  The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. 

Psa 116:4  Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. 

Psa 117:1  O praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people. 

Psa 117:2  For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD. 

Psa 118:8  It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. 

Psa 118:9  It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes. 

Psa 118:10  All nations compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD will I destroy them. 

Psa 118:17  I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD. 

Psa 118:28  Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee. 

Psa 118:29  O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. 

Then Jesus said to His disciples that they all would be offended in Him, because of the things He was about to do.

This would have sounded like very strange words coming from Him, but it was the truth.

*****Mar 14:27  And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. 

Mar 14:28  But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. 

The Lord Jesus Christ knew there were only a few hours left before His murder on Mount Calvary.

He also knew that His disciples would become afraid of their own death and they would flee away from Him.

Once accepting the truth of Jesus, we do not ever have to fear death again!

Anytime we flee from Jesus it is a sin!

Jesus said "all ye shall be offended of me this night".

That word offend means "to stumble", "to fall", or "a falling away".

Much of the modern Church is doing the same thing today!

The Church has become too afraid to stand on the truth of the Word of God, and are fleeing from the truth of God, and compromising on God's Word.

We are witnessing the "Great Falling Away" from the truth of God, today!

The Church is afraid of being called, "racist", "bigots", and many other names, when we are to let the Word of God speak for us.

The Lord Jesus stated that it was Jehovah, His Father, who would be behind His death.

The Scripture said, "I will smite the Shepherd".

The Lord Jesus had already said that He was the Shepherd of His people.

Joh 10:11  I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. 

This Prophecy of the Old Testament applied to our Savior!

Zec 13:5  But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. 

Zec 13:6  And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. 

Zec 13:7  Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. 

It is a shame that we do not take our stand on the One who has the power to save us! His name is Jesus the Messiah.

For the disciples, the threat coming from the world and the weakness of their flesh, would be too much to overcome.

This is the same crossroads that much of the Church faces today!

Are we going to take our stand with Jesus or are we going to be so afraid of the world that we scatter and hide from them?

Yes, our flesh is weak, but we are home to the Holy Spirit who has all power.

Then the Lord says, I will meet you at the Sea of Galilee after His resurrection.

The Lord Jesus is informing these disciples that He had already forgiven them for the things they did by fleeing from Him.

He would have to rise from that death to do this!

Our power comes from our resurrected Lord, and not the death of our Lord!

There is no power in His death!

In His death the Lord took all our sin and placed it in the Burning Lake of Fire where it belongs!

Php 3:10  That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 

Php 3:11  If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. 

Our faith is most important in this issue of the truth.

1Co 15:16  For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: 

1Co 15:17  And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. 

1Co 15:18  Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. 

1Co 15:19  If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 

1Co 15:20  But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. 

1Co 15:21  For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. 

God the Holy Spirit raised up the Lord Jesus Christ on the third day.

God the Father showed the Lord Jesus openly to chosen witnesses and many did eat and drink with Him.

We know that Jesus appeared to over five hundred people at one time. There were plenty of witnesses to the resurrected Christ.

We know that Christ Jesus made this special appointment to meet with His disciples to gather them, to assure them, to comfort them and to strengthen them, proving what He said was true.

If the Lord Jesus Christ has called us, He will always return to us in our time of need and in the time to redeem us!

It was now up to the disciples to trust Him in His Word!

Again Peter speaks up, not realizing what he would do.

*****Mar 14:29  But Peter said unto him, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I. 

What did Peter do?

1) Peter contradicted the Words of Jesus Christ.

Peter could not face his weakness nor his failure.

The Lord had said these things because they would be true.

2) Peter prefers himself, putting himself above all the others.

He said they might Lord, but I never will and Peter was wrong again.

None of us are as strong as we think we are, and the Lord Jesus Christ understands this.

We are still to do our very best, our very best is what we owe to the Lord.

3) Peter placed his strength, his confidence, and his boldness, in his own strength.

Our true strength comes to us when we rely on the Lord and seek His protection in all things!

Peter had to be informed of just how miserable his strength would be, and we can be sure Peter was hurt by this truth.

*****Mar 14:30  And Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. 

Mar 14:31  But he spake the more vehemently, If I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all. 

Certainly, Peter was sincere!

The Lord Jesus was not harsh, He just wants us to realize our weaknesses before they get us into trouble in this world.

Certainly, Peter was loyal to Christ and He would remain that way, but we are all just sinners in need of the power of God that comes by Jesus Christ.

We have no power ourselves!

We must depend upon the Holy Spirit who lives within us and the Lord Jesus Christ who loves us and God the Father who is Almighty.

This is our defense in this world and we have no other defense!

We must trust the strength of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Peter became vehement which was close to violent, or furious, that the Lord would say such a thing and the other ten said the same thing.

Judas had already left to do his dirty work.

The Lord Jesus said to Peter, when you hear the cock crow, you will remember these words you have said.

Peter and the other ten were still blind to the cross.

It may have been the image of Jesus hanging on a cross that caused Peter to deny Him.

The world still has this same image today, a crucified Christ. 

The Catholic Church still displays the Lord Jesus Christ dangling from a cross, but I serve a risen Savior!

A person who died on a cross had to be guilty of something, but the Lord Jesus was innocent of all charges.

We must realize just how weak we are in our flesh!

We are not above sin!

We are also not above failure!

We just do not know our strength under certain circumstances unless that strength is in the Lord, who cannot fail and who cannot sin!

The Word of God is true in all cases and we must never deny the truth of the Word of God.

The Lord Jesus is our Creator, and He knows us better than we know ourselves!

We must be obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ!

Jer 17:5  Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. 

Jer 17:7  Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. 

Keeping the words of Jesus insures us of the power of the Holy Spirit!

Joh 14:15  If ye love me, keep my commandments. 

Joh 14:16  And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 

Joh 14:17  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 

Joh 14:18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. 

It was time to pray for the strength of the Lord.

It is time today to pray for the strength of the Church!

*****Mar 14:32  And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. 

Mar 14:33  And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; 

Mar 14:34  And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. 

Mar 14:35  And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 

Not any of us could ever understand the depth of sorrow and agony experienced by the Lord Jesus at Gethsemane.

We have just read about this thing with the disciples whom Jesus loved, and He loves all His disciples.

Even greater than this was the fact of His death as He took upon Himself all the sin that had ever been committed and all the sin that would be committed until the end of time upon Himself so He could bury all that sin in Hell where it belongs.

Even great than this, Jesus knew that His Heavenly Father could not look upon sin and for a moment in time, He would lose fellowship with His Father.

The Holy Spirit would leave Him for a moment and He would truly be on His own in this sinful world.

Certainly, there was a search for relief that could not be found.

Certainly, He was disappointed with His close friends.

There was no answer from His Father for a better way, His death was the only way!

These things must be done according to the Word of God, the plan of God!

Our Lord Jesus had a great need for prayer and Gethsemane had been His place of comfort and a place for prayer upon this earth!

Jesus began to sweat as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground.

The conflict within Him began to cry out.

"O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me."

He received no answer from His Father.

This had never happened to Him before.

Jesus felt the need for His friends to give Him strength and all they knew was sleep.

Psa 69:20  Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. 

Our Lord Jesus suffered much more than we can imagine and the Devil tried his best to kill the Lord Jesus at this time rather than allow Him the death of the cross.

The Lord Jesus had to die on that cross in order to free us from sin.

Joh_12:32  And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

You see in our hour of weakness; the Devil will try his best to kill us all!

He is still a coward looking for any weakness we have.

When we have any separation from God, the Devil will try his best to kill us or ruin our testimony!

Jesus prayed harder because He could find no relief.

*****Mar 14:36  And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. 

We must understand that once we are saved, we are then the adopted sons and daughters of the Almighty God.

Since we are then family, we are permitted to address our God with Abba which could be said to mean "Daddy", showing our love and affection for our Heavenly Father.

By being adopted into the family of God, we are also heirs of the Heavenly inheritance.

Because we are family, we are forgiven, and justified, and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Our Heavenly Father could not take what Jesus refers to as "this cup" because Jesus would have to do this Himself, which He had the power to do.

Jesus could have said no to these things if He so chose to do so.

He would have then been unholy and unrighteous and He could not change His character!

Sin is a heavy burden and the Lord took upon Himself all the sin from the time of Adam and Eve until He returns with His wrath.

The Lord Jesus needed to be alone with His Father, but He kept His disciples near to Him, about as far as we could throw a stone.

The Lord Jesus prayed to ask His Father if there was some other way to secure salvation for believers.

He was not trying to get out of His death on that cross.

Jesus just did not want to lose fellowship with His Father even if it would be for just a moment in time.

The Lord Jesus addressed His Father in the most tender of ways saying Abba Father.

The Lord Jesus acknowledged that nothing is impossible for His Heavenly Father.

But God the Father only does what He has willed to do and it is God's will that all be saved.

It was God's will that He gave His Son to bear the judgment of sin for every person.

The Lord Jesus knew all these things but His flesh struggled with this truth.

The pressure of being cut off from His Father for any amount of time was just too heavy.

He knew His Father would not, but He cried out with His love.

We must understand that the Lord Jesus was not fearing nor shrinking from death itself!

Joh 10:17  Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 

Joh 10:18  No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. 

In reality, death for a cause is not such a great price to pay.

We know that over 2500 members of the terrorist group Hamas gave their lives for a useless cause and it meant nothing to most of the world other than stupidity.

Notice also that their leaders are always far away in another country safe and secure, what a joke that people would blindly follow a false messiah of their own.

There are many who have martyred themselves for many different causes and the only ones that were important where those who gave their lives for the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus Christ did not come to this earth to be a martyr!

The Lord Jesus came to this earth to be a sacrifice for our sin, not His, He had no sin.

The Lord Jesus was the sacrificial lamb of God, given to take away the sins of the world.

How can we describe this cup?

1) Isa 51:17  Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. 

This is the cup of God's fury.

2) Psa 11:6  Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. 

This is the cup of God's wrath.

3) Psa 116:13  I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. 

This is the cup of our salvation.

The Lord Jesus wanted the disciples to pray with Him to give Him strength for His own prayer, but after an exhausting day and a special meal and songs of rejoicing, they were just too tired to help their Master.

This is the same excuse many of us will use when it is our time to serve the Lord!

We should ask ourselves, why does God love us so much? Most of us are of little use to Him.

*****Mar 14:37  And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? 

Mar 14:38  Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. 

Mar 14:39  And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. 

Mar 14:40  And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. 

It is no wonder that the Lord Jesus Christ gets so disappointed with us some days.

When we put on the armor of God, we must always be ready for the battle with evil that surrounds us!

The Lord spoke to all three of them, but the Lord addressed Peter so he could remember what he had said earlier.

Peter declared that he would stand with the Lord Jesus through anything that would happen to Him yet, he could not stand with Him with prayer.

Notice the Lord used Simon rather than Peter. 

These were things the old Peter would say and do, and not the new Peter.

When we allow our own flesh to get the best of us, we are a disappointment to our Savior!

The Lord had not asked the disciples to pray all night, He had only asked for one hour.

Rom 8:8  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 

Even under such a burden, the Lord returned to His prayers searching for strength.

We should understand that if the Devil could have caused the death of the Lord Jesus Christ this night, there would be no salvation for anyone.

Jesus had to die upon that cross.

Joh_3:14  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

Joh_12:32  And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

The Lord Jesus had found no relief from His Father so He continued with His prayer.

The Lord Jesus got no answer to His prayer and He was disappointed with His disciples, but He knew the will of God for His life and He continued with His ministry of the truth.

He was satisfied with the task that lay before Him.

*****Mar 14:41  And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 

Mar 14:42  Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand. 

God the Father had given the Lord relief in His soul.

We can see this as we read these words in this passage in the Book of Psalms.

Psa 138:3  In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul. 

There was no shrinking away from the task at hand for the Lord.

Jesus also knew He had been betrayed into the hand of sinners.

We know that this death of the Messiah was the most heinous crime in history for He was the Son of Man, the Perfect man, and was killed by foolish men from Israel but this was also the plan of God for our Salvation.

It is the sin of the world that would cause the death of our Savior beginning with the sin of Adam!

Jesus' relief came to Him because He knew He was in the will of God the Father.

We are never happy nor content until we are in the will of God the Father!

Being in the will of God is the safest most joyous place we can be!

Here comes Judas the traitor.

*****Mar 14:43  And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 

Mar 14:44  And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely. 

Mar 14:45  And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him. 

Mar 14:46  And they laid their hands on him, and took him. 

In the darkness of the night He could see the light of the torches coming to get Him.

None of those with Judas would have known where the Lord and His disciples were located without Judas providing that information.

Judas was a follower who turned against the Lord Jesus Christ.

Much of the modern church could be called the Judas Church today!

The modern church is full of swords and staves as they crucify our Lord again and again and again.

Jesus was treated as a false Messiah even though He was the true Messiah and the world has not been the same since.

A kiss on the cheek of our Savior pointed the enemy to this simple humble Savior who had done no wrong.

Judas was a thief, a robber, but also a traitor.

Joh 18:3  Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. 

Joh 18:4  Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye?

Then they laid their hands upon God and God's plan moves right along just as He planned it.

Act 13:26  Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. 

Act 13:27  For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. 

Act 13:28  And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. 

Act 13:29  And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. 

Act 13:30  But God raised him from the dead: 

The Lord Jesus arose from that death as our Savior because death has no power over the Messiah, our true God!

Amen

Desires and Ambition

 The Servant's Mandate

Book of Mark Chapter 10

The time that the Lord Jesus had left upon this earth was growing short and He was making His last trip to Jerusalem.

What the Lord Jesus had come to do, to die for the sin of the entire world, was about to take place in a few short days and the world would never be the same.

We should understand that at this time, the Jews were praying for the coming of the Messiah.

They were tired of the dominance of Rome and the evil that had come to the Jews.

Under the Romans, the people felt that God could not wait much longer before He sent the Anointed One, the Messiah.

We have this same feeling today on the return of the Messiah.

The Messiah was the promised answer to all their problems!

Some men had come claiming to be the Messiah and many Jews had fallen into the trap believing them, when nothing in the Scriptures had said they were true.

These things had caused more problems with Rome.

Barabbas was one of those who had been an insurrectionist and was now in prison.

How did these Jews see the Messiah?

1) He would be the leader from the line of David who would free the Jewish state and establish Israel as an independent nation and lead Israel to become the greatest nation this world has ever known.

2) The Messiah would be the greatest military leader to have ever lived and would lead the armies of Israel to victory.

3) The Messiah would be that supernatural figure straight from Jehovah and bring righteousness to all the earth.

4) The Messiah would be the One who would bring peace to all of this world.

We can see that the Antichrist will have no problem convincing the people of the secular world that he is the true Messiah.

There should have been no doubt that this Jesus was indeed the promised Messiah because He had fulfilled the Scriptures associated with Him.

The name Jesus shows Him to be 100% man.

The name Christ (Messiah) shows Him to be 100% God.

In one person the anointed One of God the true Messiah.

Mat 16:16  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 

Mat 16:17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Mar 14:61  But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? 

Mar 14:62  And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. 

Joh 4:25  The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 

Joh 4:26  Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.

Jesus Christ, is God's very own Son.

The promised Prophet:

Deu 18:15  The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; 

The promised Priest:

Psa 110:4  The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.

The priest that lives forever.

His priesthood cannot be transmitted nor interrupted by death.

His priesthood is unchangeable.

Heb 6:19  Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; 

Heb 6:20  Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. 

The promised King:

2Sa 7:12  And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 

2Sa 7:13  He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 

God said Jesus was His Son

Mat 3:16  And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 

Mat 3:17  And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 

All the Gospels say that the Heavens opened with this message to the Lord Jesus.

All these things being, true plus the fact that the Lord Jesus had told all His disciples what would happen during this time in Jerusalem, we would expect those twelve men to be more serious about the role they would play in God's plan of salvation.

All these men could think of was that the Lord Jesus was about to free Israel and set up His kingdom upon this earth.

Two of the disciples, James, and John, with the help of their mother wanted to get the upper hand over the other disciples and they allowed their ambitions to take over good judgment.

Luk 9:46  Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest. 

We see that the love of the Lord came second to personal ambition.

The Lord Jesus Christ must be first in our lives!

*****Mar 10:35  And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. 

The Lord Jesus Christ was just a few days from His death upon a nasty old cross, and He was faced with the foolish tactics of humans trying to outdo each other!

This is one of our greatest pitfalls.

We must understand that most of the time our desires will get in the way of our relationship with our Savior!

Desire means concupiscence and concupiscence means any improper or illicit desire; sensual appetite; especially, lustful desire or feeling; sensuality; lust.

We could also say that desire could mean our ambitions.

This sort of desire is sinful because our desire should be to be like the Lord Jesus Christ!

These two presented their desires to the Lord in secret because they thought they could get ahead of the others who they felt wanted the same thing, to be closest to the Lord Jesus when He was King of Israel.

Luk 9:46  Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest. 

They even tried to take advantage by using the relationship of their mother to the Lord.

James and John came from a rich family.

Remember there were certain women who provided funds and support of this ministry of Christ Jesus.

One of those was their mother!

Luk 8:3  And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance. 

John and James came from a family that were financially able to help the Lord Jesus Christ.

The ambitions of these two disciples of the Lord were sinful, because it came from their heart and we know the heart is deceitful.

It also caused them to use other people to fulfill their ambitions.

Notice their words: "we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire.”

They tried to get the Lord Jesus to commit to their requests before they revealed what their request was all about.

They knew their desire might be sinful!

They were blinded by their own lust to be honored above the other disciples.

Many a Preacher today will not preach some truths because it might cause some well-off persons to contribute to their ministry or it may lead them to cease to give their support.

When we have a great desire to fulfill some ambition that we should not have, but are determined anyway, then it is sin!

Joh 5:44  How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? 

Oba 1:3  The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground? 

Oba 1:4  Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD. 

The Lord Jesus, even though He knew what was in their hearts asked "what are you asking of Me".

*****Mar 10:36  And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? 

Mar 10:37  They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory. 

James and John fully believed that when Jesus reached Jerusalem, He was going to set up His promised Kingdom.

They wanted to be the top ministers of this new government of Christ.

What makes our ambitions to be good or bad?

It is the motive behind that ambition!

**They wanted Christ to prove that they were His favorite disciples.

We know that upon three occasions, the Lord had separated Peter, James, and John from the others so it seems they wanted to get ahead of Peter.

They felt like they were special, the inner circle of Christ's ministry, therefore they were due some recognition.

This is sinful pride and a great lesson for us all to learn.

When we feel like the Lord owes us something great for the work we do in His ministry, we should realize that He has already given us the greatest gift of all and it is salvation and an eternal home in Heaven.

What is the truth of God?

God is no respecter of persons!

Act 10:34  Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 

Act 10:35  But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. 

We also know that pride goes before destruction!

Pro 16:18  Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. 

Pro 16:19  Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. 

Coming from a wealthy family did carry some weight with the rulers of that day, but not with the Lord Jesus Christ!

Wealth can make a person to be self-centered.

It can cause selfishness.

It can cause some to seek more attention than others.

It can cause some to expect more honor.

It can cause some to expect more favor to be shown to them.

But it can also cause some to be selective in using the Word of God!

Mar 4:19  And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 

It would seem to others that they thought they were on the same level of importance as the Messiah.

These things are detrimental to the Church.

Church leaders who seek honor and recognition seldom help a church!

It is the same for anyone who wants to be on a level equal to Jesus Christ!

Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church and we are the body of Christ.

What is the truth?  Some will be the heart of the Church and some the mind of the Church, but some will also have to be the rear end of the church and most of us will be the feet of the Church, and the Lord honors them all exactly the same, except for the true Preacher.

The Lord Jesus informed James and John that they did not really understand what they were asking Him.

*****Mar 10:38  But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?

 The Lord Jesus pulled no punches and asked these two disciples, "can you go through the things and suffer through the things I am about to go through"?

Can you drink the cup of agony?

**That cup refers to what we can take and bear ourselves.

That cup means drinking the bitterness of agony of trials and the pain and the suffering of those trials, and the disappointment the Lord Jesus Christ has in us, if we have not been saved.

How much suffering can we take until we say, “that's enough”?

This is more than just outward suffering and it includes inward suffering which is many times worst.

**That baptism Jesus refers to, is the suffering that Jesus felt that happened to Him on the outside of His body.

Isa_52:14  As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:

When we truly live for Jesus Christ and witness for Him, we are saying we accept that we must go through these things and some of us may become martyrs.

Jesus Christ demands all that we have and all that we are, if we are to carry His message of salvation to this world!

We must live so differently from this world we live in, that this world sees us as different, even peculiar!

We must live for God rather than live for ourselves!

What do we know? James the brother John was the first Apostle to die just because he accepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ and witnessed for Him.

His death had nothing to do with what he was doing with his brother on this day.

Over time, all the others but John, the brother of James, suffered their death just because they refused to stop preaching the Gospel!

John lived to be around one hundred years old and we do not know just how he died.

John suffered in ways the others did not.

John witnessed the suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ.

John lived through the murder and the deaths of all the other Apostles.

John lived a long life of banishment and exile.

The Lord Jesus warned them that these things could happen to them.

*****Mar 10:39  And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 

Mar 10:40  But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared. 

Have you noticed that every time we elect a new president that when that person gets in office, the first thing he does is fire all those from the previous administration that he is able to and put in place those who have supported him, who have donated to him, and those who think the same as he thinks.

These are acts of favor!

The Lord Jesus firmly says that this is not the way His kingdom will be!

Jesus says, "it is not mine to give".

Jesus did say that someone would sit on His right and on His left!

Jesus did say these things would be given to those for whom it is prepared.

The part of Jesus in the flesh could not know who these persons would be.

The Jesus part that is God certainly knew who these persons would be.

We can see that God is preparing to bestow such an honor on some persons that may seem to be above others!

Some say these points toward degrees of glory in Heaven.

Some say this will take place in the time of the Millennial Kingdom.

We should understand that there will be some places of agony in Hell much worse than other places in Hell.

Jesus Christ is the Giver of life and the Giver of eternal life, but He never gives by way of favoring one above another.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

1Co 9:24  Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 

1Co 9:25  And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 

1Co 9:26  I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: 

1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

How are we to run in this race for the prizes of Heaven?

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

What I know is, that everyone who is saved from the wrath of God, has a mansion prepared for them in Heaven and I believe they all will be the same and will be covered with the beautifulness of Heaven.

These are things we are not to worry about, but as Paul says by the Holy Spirit, just get in the race and do what the Lord has called upon us to do.

We must be sure to be in the will of God for our lives!

Joh 14:1  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 

Joh 14:2  In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 

Joh 14:4  And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

Jesus also said that some of those who came first will be last and some of those who came last would be first.

Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Mat 19:29  And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 

Mat 19:30  But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

The main thing is, let us not let our ambitions get in the way of our serving the Lord!

By this time, the other ten disciples found out what was going on with James and John.

*****Mar 10:41  And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John. 

We may not know how these others found out how this thing was going, but when they did, it certainly caused problems with the disciples.

We do know that James and John came from a family that lived in a better social position than most of the rest and they were well aware of how things worked in government and religious circles, so rightly so these men were upset.

Anger was aroused.

Tempers flared.

Arguments became inflamed.

The Church of Jesus Christ was in jeopardy because of petty issues that should not have taken place, but we are all humans with our sin nature intact.

What did the Lord Jesus do? He gathered them all together to settle this issue at once.

*****Mar 10:42  But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 

Mar 10:43  But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 

Mar 10:44  And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 

First, the Lord Jesus did not find fault with ambition and He does not today.

We need some part of ambition in our service to the Lord.

Jesus did not find fault with power or authority.

What Jesus condemned, is the way leaders and tyrants use this power today, such as we see in our own government.

The way judges are selected, the way officers of government are selected, is what caused the Lord Jesus to condemn this practice.

Let us call this the principles of lordship.

These things are done simply to show that they have the power to do this to us.

It really came out in the period of Covid 19.

This government would take all our freedoms away, if we allowed these things to continue.

They do not have this freedom according to our Constitution and we must stand against them.

The truth is, if people are left to themselves, the systems that they will construct will be centralized and monarchical.

There will be those who think of themselves as lords over the people. 

There will be those who think they are dukes or equivalent. 

There will be that one who thinks of himself as king.

We see this every day in our own nation!

The Lord Jesus says the Church, the people of God, will not operate this way.

Jesus said ambition is good when it does not seek to rule and exercise authority.

Jesus says that true ambition is not desiring the chief positions.

It is not self-centered.

It is not selfish.

It is not worldly minded.

The closer we are to be like our Lord Jesus, the greater a witness we can become.

The better we are at being obedient to the Word of God, the greater we will become.

The more we look for people who need help to be saved, the greater we will become.

The greatest, are those who witness for the Lord Jesus Christ.

The chieftest, are those who are the servants of God!

To be the greatest person is to be the greatest servant.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 

Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

To be the greatest, is to walk in the ways of the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Mar 10:45  For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

The greatest example of ambition in the Bible for the Church is the Lord Jesus Christ, who would not rest until He faced the cross for us.

Isa_50:7  For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.

Jesus faced humiliation far above what we can understand.

Php 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 

Php 2:7  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 

Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 

The Lord Jesus secured His kingdom by becoming a servant to those who would follow Him.

The Lord Jesus became the ransom that God required for our sin!

2Co 5:14  For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: 

2Co 5:15  And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. 

2Co 5:16  Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. 

2Co 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

If we have a great ambition, then let that ambition to be more like the Lord Jesus Christ and to walk in His ways. 

Besides for me, I am like the Psalmist.

Psa_84:10  For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

Amen