understanding Jesus as way to salvation

Many people are both comforted by the declaration that Jesus Christ is the Way to salvation (Christians) and disconcerted, disheartened and even angry with that declaration (non Christians). I have this very quick analogy to explain, comfort and clarify.

A lot of Christians are not going to like what I'm going to say, but that is alright because Jesus Christ came to save the world, to be its true hero, and by that I mean the entire world. So yes, Jesus Christ is the one and only way to be saved. However, one must look at scripture to understand that Jesus, through God, is perfectly capable of saving people who do not know him.

In other words, a person must have a relationship with Jesus to be saved, but no where in the scripture does it say that Jesus is incapable of saving someone that Jesus is in a one way relationship with. What I am saying is that Jesus, having the full authority of God, is perfectly capable of opening the door for someone to God, if that person is righteous and just. So before I explain further, here is my analogy.

Imagine heaven as the home of God, where God resides inside (although of course he sees everything everywhere at all times). Imagine that heaven, the house of God, has only one door. Imagine that Jesus is the gate keeper to that door, and only Jesus, working with the full authority of God the Father, will allow someone into heaven.

Imagine a righteous and just man has died, one who is of the faith that worships God, but that man may or may not have heard about Jesus and the Good News. However, God, and Jesus, are fully aware that this is a just and righteous man who worships God alone. So let us assume that the man arrives at the door and does not recognize Jesus, but he asks to see God.

Jesus looks into the man's heart and soul (and of course, God and Jesus already know all that this man has lived, thought, felt and done) and sees his righteousness and genuine love for God, the Father. If you were a son at the door to your father's house, and a dear friend of your father asked to come in, would you say no?

Do not be jealous and selfish of Jesus being the way to God. As the gatekeeper and the way, Jesus has perfect knowledge, judgment and authority to admit, or turn away, from heaven anyone. As Jesus often stated, he and God the Father are as one in their purpose and their salvatory power.

And those of you who may be of the faith of the one true God, do not be afraid of Jesus Christ being the way. He knows who you are even if you do not fully know who he is. Jesus will not turn away righteous and just men and women, boys and girls, who fear God, who love God, and who worship God.

Luke 12:32, 34
Do not be afraid, little flock, for it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom...For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

Luke 18:26-27, 29
And they who heard it said, "Who then can be saved?" He said to them, "Things that are impossible with men are possible with God." ... And he said to them, "Amen I say to you, there is no one who has left house, or parents, or brothers, or wife, or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive much more in the present time, and in the age to come life everlasting."

I used italics for Jesus' words "for the kingdom of God," for that is my point. Jesus is not saying that everyone must give up all they have in order to achieve heaven, for with this list he was referring to his direct followers. What Jesus is saying is that if one puts aside everything in life as secondary, no matter how dear, for the sake of the kingdom of God, he or she shall receive that and more.

Jesus constantly kept his words to be directed toward the kingdom of God, to worship of God, and to God as every man and woman's hope and faith. Notice that whenever Jesus performed a miraculous cure that the recipient praised God, from whom Jesus' power flowed, not Jesus himself and that was the acceptable response. In scripture Jesus orders the leper to the temple to perform the standard sacrifice to God after the leper's cure by Jesus. Jesus continually pointed his followers' attention to God and the goal of worshipping and serving God alone.

This is how you must understand that God and Jesus are perfectly capable, of course, of saving people who worship God and God alone, and who do not realize that they have a relationship with Jesus.

Jesus is like the foreman of God's construction yard, and he observes all the employees of God, even if that employee has never met Jesus nor received his instructions from Jesus directly. Jesus (and God) are perfectly capable of observing the diligent man or woman who serves God faithfully, without even knowing they are being observed by Jesus, nor have received training or instruction from Jesus directly.

Obviously, the more anyone of any faith truly understands and learns about Jesus directly, the more he is drawn to Jesus and thus to God. Jesus is God's ultimate gift to humankind, in order to most easily find their way to God. This is why Jesus is the way, for he illuminates God's truth. It is, however, an error to diminish God's All Knowing and Mercy in any way, however, to take Jesus' role and God's capabilities and limit them to some sort of "accept Jesus or else" litmus test. God is All Knowing and Merciful and he sees, knows, recognizes and rewards his faithful servants. If through circumstance a person does not realize that he has a relationship with and through Jesus Christ, this does not make God unable to see the righteousness, justice and sanctity in that person's heart, for God's seeing is not at all limited in any way.

"Things that are impossible with men are possible with God."

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his justice, and all these things shall be given you besides" (Matthew 6:33).

"Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into his harvest" (Matthew 9:38).

Having said all of this, I must strongly caution you against disowning Jesus, against denying or defaming him. What I have written about above is about people who are obedient to God but through circumstances beyond their control do not have a relationship that they are aware of with Jesus. Many Christians do not understand that Muslims DO have a relationship with Jesus, for he is an esteemed Messiah of the Jewish people, born of the Virgin, given authority by God, and ascended into heaven, as documented in the Qur'an.

People who have to worry are those who do not serve God and who directly defame Jesus.

"Therefore, everyone who acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I in turn will disown him before my Father in heaven," (Matthew 10:32-33).

However, the work of Jesus in promoting the kingdom of God reaches all:

"The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and buried in three measure of flour, until all of it was leavened" (Matthew 13:33).

Young people (hi!) and those who do not understand cooking and thus this parable. Yeast is added to flour in order to make it rise into what can be baked as a loaf of bread. Jesus is saying that the action of heaven (like yeast) reaches the entire amount of flour, even though there is more flour in quantity than yeast. The woman who buries the yeast (mixes it) spreads the active ingredient, the yeast, sufficiently so that it reacts with the entire flour. Likewise the kingdom of heaven reaches out to the entire world, through specific points, no matter how small, of active agency. The objective is to have rise the entire loaf of bread, hence, all peoples, accept the kingdom of heaven and be saved.

And they went and entered a Samaritan town to make ready for him, and they did not receive him... when his disciples.... saw this, they said, "Lord, wilt thou that we bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?" But he turned and rebuked them, saying, "You do not know of what manner of spirit you are; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." And they went to another village (Luke 9:54-56).

Glory to God, not pride, the path to safety

The world is an unsafe place, ever since Adam and Eve sinned their way out of God's perfect protection of Eden. It does not matter how "good" or "wicked" you are, nor what your intentions are behind your deeds, or your motivations behind your thoughts or actions, nor what religion or not that you are, and certainly not how "gifted" or "enlightened" you think you are. The world remains an unsafe place because mishaps and death are a fact of life.

Having said that, the one way to be the safest possible in a physically unsafe world is to use one yardstick, one measure, in all your thoughts and deeds, and even your day to day actions. Do not do anything unless you dedicate your action to the greater glory of God first and foremost. If you do something based on your own pride, you are more vulnerable to mishaps and death.

Pride causes people to take chances that they do not need to risk. Pride causes people to crave money, power and media attention with public adulation. Pride causes companies and governments to not have the correct attention to the correct risks, dangers and problems that they and other people face. Pride causes people to mistrust other people's good advice.

Proverbs 16:18

Proverbs 18:12


If you pause before anything that you do, and ask yourself just very quickly, "Is God glorified in what I am about to do, or am I about to do something based on pride?" I guarantee that while death and mishaps still will occur, one's priorities will be more correct and many mishaps will be avoided.

I hope that you have found this helpful.

Sirach 6:16-18
A faithful friend is a life-saving remedy, such as he who fears God finds; for he who fears God behaves accordingly, and his friend will be like himself. My son, from your youth embrace discipline; thus will you find wisdom with graying hair.

Proverbs 16:18
Pride goeth before disaster, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

Proverbs 18:12
Before his downfall a man's heart is haughty, but humility goes before honors.

understanding spiritual warfare

I understand that many passages in scriptures have the power of sounding like a succinct rallying call, one that "cuts to the chase" and inspires people. However, you have to be very cautious about any particular scripture passage being your "motto," your "vow" (remember, Jesus most strongly warned against making any vows before God, ANY, no matter how worthy appearing) or having a passage be like your Cliff Notes (study summary) that gives you a "bottom line" for your spiritual life. The reason I am writing this is that I know many are fascinated with much of what Paul wrote, particularly Ephesians 6:10-18. (I'm not going to type it out because if you look it up yourself you really should read the whole short chapter 6 to have it in context).

Here's the problem. Whenever someone extracts one saying from the Bible, one is in danger of doing a transplant from the common understanding of the Bible authors and participants to the people of the time (which is what God intended) to reworking those quotes into a modern context.

First, a silly example for a smile. Suppose the Bible wrote about whales traveling in pods and how important it is to be like whales and travel in pods. Some modern people might think, "Whoa! The Bible is saying to always carry your IPods!" Yeah, I'm being silly but I want you to right up front understand what I mean about transplanting a valid scripture, but said in a certain understanding (that all observant Jews who were the early Christians, especially Paul, well understood about God and human life) into a modern cultural set of blinders that has trimmed away much of the richness of understanding of what they wrote about and lived within.

OK, so here is the problem with passages like Ephesians 6:10-18 taken out of context. Paul is writing about the need to "arm" one's self in spiritual combat, against the dark forces that rule earth. He is of course entirely correct. However, people of his time (and your own Christian and Jewish ancestors, and the Muslims too) would have understood this the way it was intended, and not the way moderns would view it. You see, moderns want "bad guys," especially "bad guy aliens" or "good guy superheroes." So many moderns see Eph 6:10-18 as validation that evil spirits walk the earth and manipulate people. Often moderns then view this as permission to shun or harm those they think are "on the other side." I mean, war has two sides, right? Combat is "against" someone, right?

OK, now, slam on the brakes. Who wrote this scripture? Where was the war at? How did Paul "know" there's a battle with dark spirits on one side against the good guys?

Well, here's the bombshell of understanding you have all forgotten. Paul was on "both sides." Paul was a Jew, a highly observant Jew, but he was also a Roman citizen. Ta da! When you forget that you have total misunderstanding of what Paul means as combat. Romans had enslaved the Jews. Paul "belonged" to both sides, as he was both a highly religious Jew (the slave) and a highly placed and favored Roman citizen being prepared for high secular office (the slave owner).

Remember, Jesus was crucified because he would not lead an armed rebellion (using his miracles as firepower) on behalf of the Jews against the Romans. Jesus was not crucified because he did not "wrestle....against principalities,...rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places..." This is why Paul emphasizes WE WRESTLE NOT AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD (Eph 6:12).

PAUL IS POUNDING IT INTO PEOPLE'S HEADS THAT NO FLESH AND BLOOD IS "THE ENEMY" BECAUSE DUE TO THAT ERROR JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED.

Notice too that when he writes about battling principalities, powers, rules of darkness and spiritual darkness and spiritual wickedness, he is speaking of battling SIN and FAITHLESSNESS. He is not speaking of battling either evil "spirits" in the way that people think of them today NOR is he speaking of declaring a group of people (like Romans, the hot enemy at the time) as being either demonic or flesh and blood enemies. No one is more qualified to role model and speak of that than PAUL, who was both well placed Roman citizen AND Jewish/now Christian oppressed.

Paul did not stop being Roman and renounce it for Christianity. Duh, read the scripture, as he invoked his Roman rights to trial throughout his ministry and died in Rome (via the means of death given to Romans, the sword, not crucifixion, like Peter suffered.) Paul did not say, "Hey, crucify me just like the Lord was." He took advantage of being Roman elite right to the end and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, because he stayed alive longer to get the Gospel spread through his Evangelizing without being hypocritical.

So people well understood Paul's words in Ephesians and elsewhere as the battle being against the dark forces of SINS and UNBELIEF, not against evil "spirits" the way moderns think of them, or one group of humans against the other. Paul was against the bad spirituality (to use the modern terms) that is festering and spread in high places and principalities (places of authority, both secular and religious) via sin, hypocrisy and disbelief. Paul did not go to Rome to fight "against" them in "combat" to "defeat them." Paul went, like Peter, to Rome to defeat spiritual darkness (paganism and corruption) and CONVERT THEM. Spiritual combat aims at conversion, NOT fighting imaginary sources of power. No imagination is needed about the source of darkness if you read the scriptures and I don't mean just Satan. So I now need to explain the second part of this confusion, and let's use another example.

Let's use HIV/Aids disease as an example. No, I'm not causing grief by using this example but rather it is a perfect example to study. Sometime in the past century, scientists have a good idea but of course will never know exactly, the virus jumped from simian species like chimps onto a single human being. It then modified and changed as it adjusted to being in a human body and became the disease we are all too familiar with today.

So my first point is that Adam and Eve were the origin of the first sin, which was disobedience to God per temptation by Satan. Adam and Eve were tempted to "know as much as God," so to speak, so they ate the apple so they could know what evil was like. (There was nothing in the apple by the way. It was the sheer act of disobedience to the all good and loving God that opened their eyes to evil. I mean, if they had kicked God in the shins they would have also gotten the same info, the same 411, about good and evil because just being mean and disobedient to God is the initiation into sin and evil).

Now, once HIV/Aids jumped the one time to a human, it does not need to rejump from ape to human with each person who is infected, I mean, duh, right? Same with the flu or common cold. It does not need to be reinvented each time someone gets sick with cold or flu, right? Likewise is spiritual darkness. Satan only had to tempt Eve and her take it to Adam, and Satan can sit back in his lawn chair and watch. So when Satan is "at work" or there is spiritual darkness, it is not Satan running around reinventing temptation with each generation of each human being. Like Aids, it is out there and people spread it through contact with each other.

To misunderstand Ephesians 6 is like what happened with demonizing specific groups who suffer from HIV/Aids. Every type of person gets HIV/Aids, yet certain groups (like gay men) became demonized as the "causes." When one views Ephesians 6 in the wrong way, one is tempted to do likewise, to nominate yourself as the "clean" and "clear" "spirit warrior," and to thus thrust on the "other side" the "dark principalities" role and that is totally false to what Paul said AND LIVED.

Paul, following in Jesus' path, was condemning the unseen darkness of sin, disbelief, hypocrisy, spiritual slavery and corruption, while at the same time dampening down the tendencies to want flesh and blood warfare which he (as a persecutor) had also succumbed to, which is to kill the "enemy" in bodily form.

So Paul's inspiring words must be correctly understood as being against the dark invisible powers of sin, hypocrisy, corruption and disbelief, and not against invisible cartoon absurd imaginary "spirits" like so many modern dopes believe.

How to understand spiritual combat? Read about sin in the Bible. Start with these passages BY PAUL in 2 Timothy.

2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
2:5 And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
2:9 Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil-doer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound. (Paul is saying he is treated like a bad guy, even put into prison, but despite what is done to him God's truth cannot be imprisoned).
2:15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
2:16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
2:24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient.
2:25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth.
2:26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

I put 2:26 in bold italics because that's the heart of it. Satan has set the original snare and that is the combat, to EVADE THAT SNARE. Satan has no need to run around inventing new snares and sending evil spirits to go after each person in each generation, duh. That is the combat, to recover themselves (pull themselves out of the snare that, like slavery, humans are born into through sin and continual temptation.)

3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.
3:15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
(Notice that Paul is referring to scriptures still being needed, and that is OLD TESTAMENT scriptures, as New Testament didn't exist yet as Paul wrote this).
3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

What is the remedy, the "armor," the "combat" that Paul orders, to deal with the worsening evil of humans over time (3:13)? Scriptures, particularly the Old Testament for wisdom, and as the training path toward perfected humans into obedient goodness to God. PAUL ENDORSES NO OTHER APPROACH OR WAY.

4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine.

You have to read page after page after page of what Paul truly instructs before one can enjoy, be inspired by, understand, and "follow" the much loved punch lines of Eph 6:10-18.

Here is further reading to understand the dark power is sin and disobedience, not imaginary sci fi aliens or evil spirits etc.

Separates from God Isa 59:2
Its wages: death Rom 6:23
Begets moral cowardice Josh 7:11-13
Hardens the heart Heb 3:13
Is very destructive Ps 34:21
Caused Israel's downfall 2 Chr 28:22-23
Causes misery Job 15:20
Brings reproach Prov 14:34
Enslaves the will 2 Tim 3:13
Excludes from heaven 1 Cor 6:9, 10
The forgiven warned "not to continue in sin" John 5:14, John 8:11, Rom 6:12
All have sinned Rom 3:23
All have gone astray Isa 53:6
To claim sinlessness is to lie Prov 20:9, 1 John 1:8-10
Jesus alone without sin 1 Pet 2:21-22
Through Satan's deception and subtlety Gen 3:1-13, 2 Cor 11:3
In the heart Matt 15:18, 19
Through lust of flesh James 1:13-15
Against the Holy Ghost Matt 12:31-32
Is destructive Prov 11:3
Is inexcusable John 15:22
Man obdurate in sin Amos 4:6-11

understanding faith, hope, charity & other concepts

I love when I hear people discuss the scripture, especially when they have a restored joy in their actual understanding. However, I am dismayed when a fundamental error continues to take place. So here is the error and how to avoid it.

The error: You correctly understand from the scriptures that God instructs that one must have faith, hope and charity. You get that part just fine. However, you then try to understand "how" to apply faith, hope, charity and etc. by looking at fellow human "role models." That is so fundamentally wrong.

For example, you look around you for people that you think have a "lot" of "good" faith, and or a "lot" of "good" hope, and or a "lot" of "good" charity, and then you try to copy them. There is a breakdown of both faith and reasoning when you do that. The first is that God is speaking of divine faith, hope and charity, not human based faith, hope and charity. So you misunderstand what God speaks of if you think human faith fully explains what God means by faith, that human hope fully explains what God means by hope, and or that human charity fully explains what God means by charity.

Quickly I will give examples of how in scriptures you know that is an error. Jesus points out the loudly praying Pharisee as a hypocrite (comparing him to the quietly humble publican who is praying for forgiveness). Yet in those times many people would have used that arrogant Pharisee as the "biblically accurate role model for faith." The odds are that if you are looking at someone who is highly visible in their faith that you are open to being misled inadvertently because you short circuit developing your own faith based directly on what the Bible instructs and speaks to your own heart, because you truncate your understanding by studying only a human who may or may not be actually a "role model of faith."

Second, "hope" means hope of being saved, not hoping for the things that humans "hope for," whether those are good things or not. I will hone in on helping you to understand that by writing more about it below. But to make the general first point Paul states that hope is for eternal life, and you need to notice that no one describes hope as being directed toward any earthly event or object, regardless how worthy it might be to hope for, in a human context. Biblical "hope" is reserved for salvation alone.

Third, "charity" is a highly individual concept, and cannot be viewed as "works," "acts" or some sort of heavenly accounting. How do we know that? Because if you read the Beatitudes you understand that tons of really poor people are in heaven, and if you think about that, how many poor people can really do "works" of charity? Most are lucky to feed their own children. Obviously middle class and wealthy people are very tempted to fall over the stumbling block of thinking that the more you "have" the more you can "give away in charity" and thus the more "works of merit" and "good deeds" you earn. Wrong! Remember Luke 16 where that rich guy ends up in hell not because he was not a worthy Jew and probably did all the right things, including charity, but he didn't help the ONE man that God wanted to help.

I'm going to copy a list from the index of my Bible of hope related passages. Sometimes reading an index or a table of contents really conveys the point succinctly and holistically. So here it is and then I will discuss some of the specifics. But I can well imagine that you will get my point after simply reading this index!

A gift of God 2 Thess 2 16
Saved by Rom 8 25
Should abound in Rom 15 13
Called "blessed" Titus 2 13
Inspires holiness 1 John 3 3
Helmet of salvation 1 Thess 5 8
Given by Scriptures Rom 15 4
A heavenly treature Col 1 5
For eternal life Titus 1 2
An abiding principle 1 Cor 13 13
Leads to patience Rom 8 25
Is not seen Rom 8 24
Of Christians, in death Prov 14 32
Deferred, makes the heart sick Prov 13 12
Prisoners of Zech 9 12
"Hope against hope" Rom 4 18
Maketh not ashamed Rom 5 5
Anchor of the soul Heb 6 19
Assures immortality Acts 24 15
Of wicked, shall perish Prov 11 7
Christians rejoice in Rom 12 12
Give a reason for 1 Pet 3 15
A triumphant Rom 8 38,39
A living 1 Pet 1 3
Amid trials 2 Cor 4 8

Here is the list for "hopelessness":

State of unbelievers Eph 2 12
Caused by apostasy Jer 2 25
Caused by affliction Job 17 15
The cure for Isa 49 13-16

You see the problem? None of these scriptures refer to either earthly hope (such as "hoping" that something will happen) or to role modeling people who seem "hopeful" aka optimistic, perky, uplifting, etc. People who are hopeful in an earthly sense are optimists about earthly things, and that may or may not be wise or appropriate, but teaches you nothing about God's concept of hope, which is only directed toward salvation and being close to God.

Ephesians 2:12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world.

You see, Paul is explaining one thing you might wonder in the list of scriptures of "hope" that I provided from my bible above. Why are so few Old Testament scriptures about "hope?" Because when the people of Israel lived within a theocracy (a king appointed and anointed by God and the Jews lived entirely within God's instructions and word) then they "have God," they are not "without God in the world." That's by the way why there is few references to hell or heaven for that matter in the Old Testament. The Israelites were a people of God, saved, or fallen away, as a whole. That does not mean that individual people are not judged by God on death, of course (Luke 16). But when one lives in a nation founded by God and compliant to God's will, then one does not need hope per se because one is living within the hope that God established for them. Christians, however, had to find their own hope individually as they went out into the world from the safety of the Old Covenant and into the assured, but invisible, New Covenant with God.

So Paul is explaining here that someone who is foreign to (not native of, and thus the word "alien" which does not mean imaginary space visitors) God's community, which was previously Israel and the Jews, is new to the concept of hope and, indeed, had been living in ignorance without hope.

In the Old Testament, therefore, you can now understand that hopelessness is not a state as moderns think of being pessimistic, being depressed, losing expectations of gaining some earthly object or event, but of being estranged from God and or thus risking loss of salvation.

Jeremiah 2:25 Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst, but thou saidst, There is no hope: no, for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.

When one abandons the true God for imaginary strange gods and concepts, then one loses hope through apostasy, whether one realizes it or not, or whether one goes through the motions of outward obedience or not.

Job 17:15 And where is now my hope? as for my hope, who shall see it?

Job has lost everything he had. But he is not hoping for restoration of his goods. He realizes that he had been blessed by God and now for some reason unknown to him (Satan) is unjustly estranged from God. So Job wonders where God is because God is his hope.

Isaiah 50:13-16

Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. But Zion said, the Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands thy walls are continually before me.

By the way, this passage about hope never mentions the word hope. This is one critical reason you must not rely on just looking up occurrences of certain words representing concepts you are researching in the Bible, because many times there is a wealth of information that is NOT actually mentioning the one word you are thinking about!!!!!!!!!! You learn about "hope" by reading the whole Bible (imagine that) rather than assuming hope is "discussed" or "explained" only where the translated word "hope" appears, like this is a legal text or a big old dictionary! The entire Bible is about "hope!"

God is saying that his people should rejoice in him, even in their misery of earth, because he has not forgotten them (unlike nursing mothers some of whom actually do neglect their children!) That is what is truly meant by God's hope.

Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime, were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Notice Paul does two things that are crucial. He explains that hope is found in the scriptures, reading, studying and following the scriptures using patience and for comfort. But he also continues to role model as hope being a work in progress, not a slam dunk assurance that someone has in their pocket! This is why he phrases it as "we...might have hope." None of the Apostles, including with them Paul, ever misleads people into thinking that "hope" means anything but forward looking hopefulness, not something that once gotten is never lost and never needs to be continually worked upon.

1 Thessalonians 5:8

But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breast-plate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.

OK, how many of you in sports who use a helmet take your helmet off after wearing it once and saying "Hey, I wore the helmet once, and I own one, so I don't need to wear it every time I race." Um, that would be dumb. A helmet needs to be worn all the time, not just "owned" but put in a closet. Likewise hope is an ongoing condition where one wears it as a helmet, just as one covers the chest with the breast plate of faith and love.

Why does Paul use this imagery? Faith and love (charity) are matters of the heart (the chest). Hope is a matter for the head (the brain, for thinking and remembering through logic).

I hope this has helped and do read the other scriptures I've listed. Understand that this is how to understand holistically a singular concept such as hope.

Bible Reading: Mark 10:23-26

And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answered again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?

Bible reading: Proverbs 21:1

The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.

Bible Reading: Genesis 11:4-5, 8

And they said, Go to, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.

So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth, and they left off to build the city.

Bible Reading: Psalm 131(132)14-18

While thinking about the suffering of Haiti and preparing for a Bible commentary, I opened to this passage.

"Sion will be my resting place forever; in her will I dwell, for I prefer her. I will bless her with abundant provision, her poor I will fill with bread. Her priests I will clothe with salvation, and her faithful ones shall shout merrily for joy. In her will I make a horn to spout forth for David; I will place a lamp for my anointed. His enemies I will clothe with shame, but upon him my crown shall shine."


These are actual words spoken by God to King David, the pact where God promises that King David's descendants will always rule in Sion. You need to understand that God is always speaking of the present time and also the future, so there is the "here and now" meaning to King David and the Israelites, but also the "here and now" for their spiritual heirs and descendants. Thus Christians, such as those in Haiti, who are suffering today from the woes of the world can take some comfort in knowing that The Almighty God will never leave them, so long as they do not leave Him. Sion is now the spiritual Sion, the heavenly Jerusalem, which since Jesus Christ is no longer a physical place but the place of global faith in God.

Rather than turning their back on God, I see the Haitians seeing Him with even greater clarity since the earthquake tragedy. Those who honor the pact with God, sworn by King David, will find that God never leaves them.

In the Bible the horn often symbolizes power and authority, as the King and the priests use it to make the great sound. But it also represents the cornucopia, the outflowing of abundance and goodness. The horn that spouts forth for David is not of noise but of the arrival of Jesus Christ. The more that one puts one's faith in God and in Jesus Christ alone, the more that the goodness that only Christ can bring will flow forth from that horn.

Worldly well being ultimately depends on human rationality, righteousness, charity and neighbor-first priorities... all of which are very much needed in the chaos that has delayed for an unacceptable amount of time the delivery of goods and assistance in rescuing to the Haitians. The more that everyone embraces the pact, so that not only those who suffer turn their faces to Jesus Christ in hope and solace, but also those who are empowered with worldly means to help them, the more that the horn with overflow with what is needed to live, but also with eternal life and righteousness. Honoring the pact with God is the job of not just those who suffer, but also those who do have what they need, and more. I hope that Haiti softens and converts the hard and arrogant hearts of many bureaucrats, aristocrats, politicians, and professional "do-gooders," such as NGO's.

When one does not turn one's own hands and feet over to Jesus Christ on an ongoing day to day basis, one stumbles over one's own bureaucratic and selfish thinking (even when "doing good") when disaster strikes. That is because one is not truly prepared to drop everything and let Jesus be Lord. How can one find a way around shipping and airport obstacles, and fallen concrete, on the first day, if one does not have hands already open in anticipation of the need?

I hope this helps.

Suggested New Year's resolution

1 Paralipomenon 22:19

Give therefore your hearts and your souls to seek the Lord your God.


[This was spoken by King David as he instructed the princes of Israel, for being aged, David was preparing to die.]

Bible Reading: Luke 23:33-34

What the Bible says:

Luke 23:33-34
And when they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, and the robbers, one on his right hand and the other on his left. And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Now in dividing his garments they cast lots.

What the Bible does not say:
Luke (imaginary):
And then the skies parted and God said, "Oh, well, then OK! I forgive all these people who are torturing, mocking and now killing you. Carry on with the crucifixion since Jesus asked Me to forgive all of you, go right on ahead with what you are doing."

God does not grant all of Jesus' requests.

What the Bible says:

Luke 22:42-43
Saying, "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; yet not my will but thy be done." And there appeared to him an angel from heaven to strengthen him. And falling into an agony he prayed the more earnestly.

What the Bible does not say:
Luke (imaginary)
And the angel who comforted Jesus said, "Psst! Keep it secret but God has granted your request and you are not going to be betrayed, arrested and crucified. We are just totally faking them out and Judas was just part of the punking reality show."

Only God decides regarding forgiveness. I don't know how so many people today think that if they can get a victim to "forgive them" that God will automatically do so. Further, I don't know how so many people today think that because Jesus asked God to forgive his tormentors and killers that God automatically did so. That is why I included the second passage to show that immediately before the request for forgiveness by Jesus and his crucifixion, Jesus asked something else of God which was denied. An angel was sent to comfort him, so God of course heard Jesus' prayer, but God did not grant his request to remove the cup of suffering from Jesus. That would not be done until Jesus had died and resurrected, and will himself pass judgment on humans with great strictness at the Second Coming.

More about John 12:34

Another scripture source from which the Jews who questioned Jesus misunderstood-but in mostly good faith-what the Messiah would be like is the entire Psalm 110. I leave that for you to read on your own because now you can understand the difference between the description of a human ever living Messiah, as they imagined, and the actual Messiah that God promised who, "Like Melchizedek you are a priest forever." Jesus is the eternal priest and also judge, but in heaven "Who, robed in splendor, judges nations, crushes heads across the wide earth" (Psalm 110:4, 6). From this most of the Jews imagined an actual forever living human being dressed as an awesome king and dispensing justice with God's authority. They were tempted into this imagining by being too tied down by the reality of Roman invasion and rule. Thus they mixed yearning to be free from Rome with then limiting what God's Messiah would be like and would do since they of course imagined his first job would be to defeat the Romans through God's "princely power."

This is again the temptation of the Jews to believe a human forever living Messiah based on Isaiah 9:1-6. Before we discuss it let me explain again why their disbelief is a response to temptation.

Temptation can be understood as not only being urged to do something sinful, wrong and unjust, but to either disbelieve in God or to "cut him down to size." When humans have problems, BIG problems, such as wars, oppression or occupation, they become very subject to temptation to think of God's words as applying narrowly to their current circumstances. They forget that God is on a scale far vaster than they can imagine, and easily sees and prophesies down all the generations of humanity. So it is a temptation to puff up the importance of the calamity that humans are in within one or two generations and assume-or even distort or force-scripture applies to exactly that time, rather than to the ultimate reign of God's Kingdom through all time and circumstances. Thus the Jews were particularly tempted to cut down and minimize the scope of what they imagined the scriptures to be because it resonated with their own daily hopes and wishes. So now read Isaiah 9:1-6, which does indeed describe the Christ, who would be Jesus, but through temptation the Jews came to believe he would be the defeater of the Romans in their time. Notice how the scripture opens with the statement about the light that you read my commentary about, where Jesus very clearly identifies himself. The Jews of the time totally missed that connection because of their blinders due to temptation to look for the Roman defeating human king.

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom
a light has shone.
You have brought them abundant joy
and great rejoicing.
As they rejoice before you as at the harvest,
as men make merry when dividing spoils.
For the yoke that burdened them,
the pole on their shoulder,
And the rod of their taskmaster
you have smashed, as on the day of Midian.
For every boot that tramped in battle,
every cloak rolled in blood,
will be burned as fuel for flames.
For a child is born to us, a son is given us;
upon his shoulder dominion rests.
They name him Wonder-Counselor,
God-Hero,
Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.
His dominion is vast
and forever peaceful,
From David's throne, and over his kingdom,
which he confirms and sustains
By judgment and justice,
both now and forever.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this! (Isaiah 9:1-6)

See, if someone is thinking of God's greater plan, which is to bring knowledge of him to not only the Jews but the gentiles, to bring his peace upon the world, and to prepare people for receipt of grace after remission of their sins of unbelief and idolatry, that person can read this passage and have a broader vision of what the Messiah will truly be like. When, however, people are suffering under a specific crisis or oppression, as the Jews were with the Romans, they were too easily tempted to believe that the Messiah would be an earthly king who would kick the Romans out of occupied Palestine/Israel of the day.

Because of the military imagery they also totally missed that the Messiah would be "NOT military." Read that carefully and you will see what I mean. They were tempted into thinking, erroneously, as you carefully read what it says, that "forever peaceful" comes after a great blood letting by the Messiah. That is a total misread that was in their minds during the time of Jesus for three reasons 1) the military imagery made them think that the Messiah would start with military action 2) the rest of chapter 9 discusses specific military campaigns, and so they taint what is in 9:1-6 as also being of a military campaign, kind of the aftermath of bloody battles and 3) they do not understand that the "child is born to us" is one who smashes, rather than imposes, "the yoke," "the pole" and "the rod" on humans. Notice that Jesus explains that his yoke is light, his burden sweet, and there is no mention of the rod with which he will rule (it is only observed in the Final Judgement by the Apostle John who witnesses Jesus in the Book of Revelation during the Apocalypse). In fact, read how Isaiah 11 follows the same tempo where the beginning is clearly about military imagery BUT of the Messiah's bringing of grace, not swordplay.

See, someone reading Isaiah 9 would understand the two different tempos of the prophecy. The first part, Isaiah 9:1-6, is the "someday this will happen" future looking tempo. But then with Isaiah 9:7 you have a brisk "here and now" tempo shift, which is why it opens with "The Lord has sent word against Jacob, it falls upon Israel" (Isaiah 9:7). So God comforts the people with the promise of Isaiah 9:1-6 before lowering the boom on them in the rest of Isaiah 9 that they are going to be punished for their sins (and this description of soon to come righteous wrath continues through Isaiah 10 before the Messiah is prophesied again in Isaiah 11). But remember, people didn't have copies of scripture outside of the temple or the places of scholars AND just as today, people spoke in slogans and sound bytes. So when Jesus actually arrives, the promised Messiah, the people totally missed the checklist of fulfillment of prophecy that Jesus actually delivered.

I hope you have found this helpful and some useful material for further contemplation.


Isaiah 11:9
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord,
as water covers the sea.

Bible reading and commentary: John 12:34

One of the reasons that the Jews did not recognize that Jesus was the Messiah can be easily understood looking at this passage. A crowd of people had gathered around Jesus, asking him questions and listening to what he taught and replied. Here is the passage to look at:

So the crowd answered him, "We have heard from the law that the Messiah remains forever. Then how can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?" (John 12:34).

When the Jews say, "the law," they mean what is written in the Torah, in their scriptures, what Christians call the Old Testament. So they have the impression from some scripture that the Messiah will live forever, remaining with the people until the end of time. Where have they seen this written? Look to Psalm 89:4-5.

"I have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: I will make your dynasty stand forever and establish your throne through all the ages" (Psalm 89:4-5).

This is one of the places in scripture where the Jews have the impression that the Messiah will be a man, a descendant of David, who will be just like David (a king with the throne of the Israelites), who will "stand forever." So you can understand that with these words of prophecy from God most Jews thought that another David, but this time one who rules on earth forever, was to be the Messiah. Thus they are confused and dismayed when Jesus says that he, the Son of Man, would have his time of death, and then resurrection into heaven. When Jesus calls himself the Son of Man, he is reminding people that he is indeed in a human form, that he is not just occupying a body, or an illusion of being one of mankind. The crowd gets that, but then figure that the Son of Man must be a different person than the expected Messiah.

This is one reason why the Jews did not recognize Jesus. They developed a certain mental image based on scripture (and done so in good faith), but then did not have sufficient trust of God that he can and will work marvels and deliver the Messiah in ways they cannot imagine, visualize, or comprehend.

Jesus tries to explain to them how this is by comparing himself to the light (not "a" light, but the light of God).

Jesus said to them, "The light will be among you only a little while. Walk while you have the light, so that darkness may not overcome you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of the light" (John 13:35-36).

Now, Jesus is not trying to confuse them or be obscure. He is with a few sentences giving them a lot to think about, knowing that there is not much time left for him, as he says this shortly before the Last Supper. So Jesus is leaving those in the crowd with a few powerful images to refute the stereotype expectations they had of what the Messiah would be like, and then left them to think about it. Some would have understood his words, looking back on them just a matter of days later when Jesus' death and resurrection unfolded. Others would never have understood.

What Jesus was saying is that yes, as Son of Man, he is there as a real human being, a member of the human race, but that as Son of God, he is also of God's light, and that light is of course eternal. Jesus is thus saying he is not at all in contradiction of the scripture, just, actually "above and beyond," so to speak, their expectations. They expected a Messiah who would be completely a human man, but one who would live and rule forever, and bring their faith to the entire world. Jesus is exactly that, but not one who is going to do so as a man living forever among humans.

You may wonder why God did not "opt" to, in fact, have Jesus do just that: to live as a human among humans forever. The answer is simple. The Messiah is needed to draw humans closer to God, not to provide a living intermediary that would, in fact, be an additional "layer" between God and humans. Jesus brought the face of God to humans but the intention is that humans have the New Covenant with God which brings them closer to God, an upward reaching toward God, rather than God sending a governor, for lack of a better world, to "rule," while God is more distant, rather than closer. This is why Jesus often explained that the Kingdom of God is at hand. By "at hand" Jesus meant both "now" but also "within reach." The Messiah makes God more, not less, accessible to humans.

The Jews, in all fairness, could not have easily imagined that this is what God planned. They would have needed a lot of faith to understand that God would fulfill the scriptures in a way that they simply had not expected. Like the square peg in the round hole, the Jews who disbelieved were continuing to walk around with their square or their circular image of the Messiah, and when they did not see a match they would move on looking for the next "Messiah candidate" (and there were plenty, though not a single one performed the miracles that were Jesus' alone as only he had God's authority).

So Jesus is explaining to them that yes, he is the descendant of David, and yes, he has the throne, from God, but that the "forever" of it is when Jesus returns to God in the light of his eternity, not as his bodily Son of Man form. Jesus is explaining that the light of God is there with them, for a short time, while Jesus lives and walks among them. While the light will go back to God, those who believe in Jesus and follow him completely will therefore still benefit from the light, even though the light has gone back to God, because they are now become "children of the light." Jesus as the light of God that God has sent does indeed return to heaven, and the light itself does not stay on earth, nor can any human claim to have it, but instead, those who believe and heed what Jesus taught about God's expectations, God's Kingdom and the New Covenant are "children of the light" and therefore know the way and are not in darkness. It's like when you have memorized your way through the rooms of your home and can walk through them even in the dark, just to use a broad analogy. You "know the way" even though you don't have the light on. The children of Jesus "know the way" even though the actual light of Jesus has returned to heaven, and thus the children of Jesus do not walk in darkness, as do those who never believed in the light that he is and brought. Thus even when the light has returned to God those who believe in Jesus retain the knowledge of how to find God and the way just as if the light were still there, even though it is not.

I hope you have found this helpful.

Bible Reading: Acts 8:18-23

But when Simon [a man who had been practising sorcery but came to be impressed by Peter and was baptized] saw that the Holy Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money, saying, "Give me also this power, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."

But Peter said to him, "Thy money go to destruction with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money. Thou hast no part or lot in this matter; for thy heart is not right before God. Repent therefore this wickedness of thine and pray to God, that perhaps this thought of thy heart may be forgiven thee; for I see thou art in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity" (Acts 8:18-23).

Understand real Satan not cartoon Satan

Satan is a very real risk to all humans, both believers who risk their faith being disturbed, and non-believers who risk never opening their hearts enough to believe and be saved. So I am always glad when I hear a preacher remind their listeners that Satan is a continual reality that cannot be ignored.

However, it is, like all topics related to faith, important that one protects one's self by understanding the real threat, and not a misrepresentation or cartoon of the threat and as always one has to rely on God's word in the scriptures, and the actual events depicted within.

We know that Satan is the leader of the group of angels who, after being created by God, when given the choice of free will (a gift God gives to all whom he loves, both angels and humans), chose not to serve God. Because of this they were cast out of heaven. Satan is allowed to roam the earth at will and has great influence over human world events (which is why he is scripturally refered to as ruling on earth... he's not THE ruler of earth, but he receives that title because by not serving God he can only serve and thus influence things of the world. In other words he is both in the world and "of" the world. Christians in contrast are taught by Jesus to be "in the world" but not ruled by the world, hence they are not "of the world." Their priority, unlike Satan's, is heavenly directed in service to God even while alive on earth and not in heaven).

So there are two aspects of Satan that sound alarming and powerful on the surface, especially the non-scriptural depictions, but are not all that difficult to refute and to have some peace of mind about. One is that Satan is obviously not THE ruler of all earth since he obviously, both in scriptural and in secular earth history, does not run around undoing God's creation. Satan does not blow up mountains, destroy cities, poison the water, kill baby animals as they are born, uproot trees, change the weather, etc. God is still in control of his creation, which he has declared "good" upon the making of each component, and Satan has never had any power, authority or ability to use godly powers to harm life or the natural processes and features of earth. If Satan had that power then there would be nothing left of earth a long time ago, as he would have caused havoc everywhere. But the scripture reports that Satan just wanders around the earth, tempting people to sin against God and each other at every obvious opportunity. Thus it is totally wrong and alarming for no reason to have any concern at all that Satan has some sort of like running amok, evil destroyer, invading alien, anti-life, kicker of sand in the faces of baby dinosaurs type of ability or impulse. Satan's sole interest is to tempt human beings.

And that is the second reality check that people need to keep in mind. As I've pointed out before in my blogging, and I've heard more preachers allude to it recently, Satan by no means denies the existence of God. That is a weird misconception that is pretty recent and is refuted by any even casual reading of the Bible. Satan, actually, is by his obvious existence and interaction with God (the Book of Job detailing a far from hostile conversation between God and Satan) is kind of the ultimate witness to God's reality! People who want to get into witchcraft and so forth or believe strange things have recently thought of the impossibility that Satan is like an "alternative possibility" to believing in God. That's obviously ridiculous since the scriptures show that Satan continues to not only acknowledge God's reality, but interact with him, including promptly showing up to test and tempt Jesus Christ at the beginning of his ministry. Further, Satan obeys God when God establishes limits on how much Satan can afflict Job. Demons and so forth who serve Satan are the first to recognize Jesus, before Jesus even speaks to them, and they rapidly proclaim their belief, their alarm and their subservience to Jesus' authority to cast them out. So people who think that maybe there's a real powerful Satan but no God are totally delusional on two basic points. Satan has very little power and controls none of the infrastructure of earth or the life upon it AND Satan himself is the first on most scenes to acknowledge God's reality and his movement in human matters.

So, if Satan does not deny God AND Satan has no actual power except to tempt, how is he so persuasive, so effective and so dangerous? This can best be understood and thus defeated by thinking of the common saying "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." This old saying means that many humans end up going to hell because they did something evil, wrong and sinful because they "meant well." In a way, Satan is very much like the humans who go to hell because they do wrong things but self justify that their "intentions were good." Don't get me wrong because I'm not using the word "good" with "Satan," but I'm preparing you for the analogy. Satan's basic error is that he cannot grasp God's All Knowingness; he just doesn't get within the core of his being that God already knows all that there is to know. Satan's a bit condescending to God, thinking that he knows better than God, particularly when it comes to human weaknesses.

Realistically, can anyone of even weak faith think that God knows less than Satan in any scenario? But that is the Achilles heel of both Satan and human beings, which is why they are such a potent mixture. Satan thinks he knows better than God and thus is even somewhat "protective" and condescending toward God. We see this in the Book of Job, where Satan is debating with God whether Job is really truly faithful to God and if he would stay faithful if God's protection were removed from him. Um, duh, Satan thinks that God doesn't already know every "what-if" scenario already? I've blogged before how one must realize God's All Knowingness by using analogies humans can grasp, such as how God knows every subatomic particle that ever existed or will exist in the universe and all the places each particle was and will be. So God doesn't know what Job will do when hardships befall him? God knows everything already because he is God and he is the only All Knowing.

But you can see that Satan honestly thinks something like this: "Wow, that God is naive. Sure Job loves and worships God now, since he's blessed by God and has a great life and many possessions due to God's protection. I've got to show God that he can't trust Job to stay faithful to him once things start going bad for him." Satan simply does not grasp that God already knows everything, absolutely everything. We know this because Satan recognizes who Jesus is, and promptly shows up to tempt him, and Satan thinks, what, that God didn't know that Satan is going to tempt Jesus? And that Jesus, as the Son of God, would be temptable? It's like Satan thinks that maybe God didn't prepare Jesus enough, or send him with enough power, and thus there is some actual chance of tempting Jesus to disobedience to God!

So the crux of understanding Satan and his enormous power over many human beings is to realize that Satan just does not grasp and ultimately does not have faith in the All Knowingness of God. Satan has plenty of faith that God exists because more than anyone he's been there around God "from the beginning" and so obviously God's reality is Satan's continual focus. But what Satan just does not understand is God's greater plan, which is, of course, the culmination of God's All Knowingness.

And that pride, since that is indeed what we are describing, a condescending pride of Satan's, is exactly the same prevalent flaw in many human beings. Can you think of many humans who do not at some point think they know "better" than God does? Or that God "needs their help?" Brothers and sisters, you know exactly what I mean.

While few people would confess to actually thinking that God needs their "help" or that they "know better than God," they do it all the time when they cherry pick what part of God's word they choose to believe. When they discard or ignore large parts of scripture, (or even just small parts that prohibit one's favorite sin), that is more than being someone of weak faith, or maybe a hypocrite. Secretly, subconsciously, that person is thinking that he or she knows "what God really meant" and that he or she can thus figure that "God would agree with me that this part of the Bible is out of date, and that part doesn't apply to me, but that I can go along with that other stuff because those sinners out there (not me) don't do enough of the good things and God needs my help" and so on and so forth. That is music to Satan's ears and fertile ground for him to sow weeds.

This is why some people are such willing and easy dupes and tools of Satan, while others seem to have a Teflon coating and barely notice Satan's existence. Satan works best with humans who do not believe in, have faith in, or trust God's All Knowingness. The people who diminish God's power in their minds but magnify and glorify their own potential roles in both earthly and, imagine that, heavenly matters are natural allies and pawns of Satan, since they have the same weakness and "philosophy." People who lack fear of God but magnify their own spirituality, resourcefulness and role in life are the most prone to be influenced at alarming speed and depth by Satan. People who fear God (in the way I've explained in previous posts on this subject) and who are humble about their role in the major matters of divinity tend not to be tempted by or hear Satan at all. Satan totally gives a pass by to those who are shielded by their sincere fear of God and their sincere humility.

Now, some of the most devout saints suffered from great torments by Satan. I'm about to say something that is not meant to be unkind or unloving, since these were indeed genuine Christian saints of great sanctity. However, even some saints have insufficient fear of God and humility to render themselves safe from any attacks (or imagined attacks) from Satan. Some very revered Christian saints who were indeed sanctified and worthy of God had the all too human flaw of being sucked into thinking that they are linchpins in some sort of huge "good versus evil" striving. I mean, how scriptural is that? Not at all. What do I mean? Here is what I would have said to some medieval saint in the making who is afflicted by torments he or she feels is sent by Satan:

Read the scripture about the Last Supper and the betrayal of Christ by Judas. Judas, the most ripest, the biggest target of all who ever existed for temptation, was only entered by Satan at the moment he left the table to betray Jesus. Satan spent only a matter of minutes, until the betrayal was done, in Judas. Why in the world do you think Satan is having supposedly hours, days, months or years of battle within YOU?

Sometimes you have to be a tough spiritual director, even with the most sanctified of people.

Humans all are in constant grave danger of the "road to hell is paved with good intentions" weakness and pride. Saints are no exception except in one matter: their suffering (even if self induced or exaggerated) never destroys their faith in God or takes them from their sanctity of service. But I explain this problem with certains saints in order to point out to you the scriptural basis for what I am saying: Satan does not occupy or vie with human beings. Satan only strews temptations that those who fear God and are genuinely humble never even notice, while those who do not fear God and who are prone to pridefulness catch themselves up in the temptations all of the time. Satan's temptations are like lint or dust on furniture: you don't even notice it unless you think it is your job to clean it up. That's the danger of not believing completely in God's All Knowingness and over exaggerating your role in "helping" God. You start thinking that you are the one who has to dust all the furniture, and thus those hundreds and thousands of tiny nearly invisible temptations to sin, like dust motes, gather together as you focus your attention on them. The rest of us live with dusty furniture ha ha. (Just some levity for a serious subject... please excuse the humor, I so rarely get to demonstrate it!)

Do you see what I mean? This is why an analogy is so powerful. Satan is constantly scattering tiny harmless temptations, most centered around insufficient faith in God and excess pride in one's own judgment and supposed "goodness." People who are not vulnerable to temptations of hubris, pride or vanity, and who are firm in their fear of God and trust in his All Knowingness, never even notice the tiny dust motes of temptation. But those who are prone to scrutinizing the dust particles start to pick them up in quickly growing clumps that stick to them and they are now accepting of and subjugated to Satan's temptations with alarming weight and rapidity.

Taking upon one's self a perception that you personally are "battling Satan" is a grave and not-scripturally based error. Remember, Judas himself did not "battle" Satan, nor was he owned by Satan or possessed by Satan. Rather, Judas picked up a lot of "dust particles" of pride which estranged him from his basic trust in God's providence, and then Satan only had to enter him for a few minutes to actually perform that greatest betrayal. If you think that you are in combat with some supposed spiritual forces, you have deviated from the truth of what is in the Bible (no one in the Bible is combating Satan etc on a personal basis). What they are doing is resisting Satan's temptations. There is a huge difference between the two.

This is why Paul said that Christians must be "dead to sin." When one is dead one is inert and like a chemical that just won't react with anything. Being in a hypersensitive and combative stance toward anything is not being "dead to sin." Rather, like collecting the dust motes, it is a problem of insufficient protection (study of scripture, faith in God's power, cultivating fear of God and humility) while completely over exaggerating one's own interaction with temptations. People, like that class of afflicted saints, who think they are in some sort of numinous and supernatural "combat" against "evil forces, such as Satan" are driving themselves nuts by collecting every dust mote of temptation that Satan has laid out there for them. Who in the Bible is actually "combating" Satan? Jesus did not even waste an hour of his earthly time doing so. Moses didn't. David didn't. Isaiah didn't. Joseph and Mary didn't. John the Baptist didn't. All the prophets and holy people of the Bible were focused on two things 1) teaching God's will based on righteousness to the people and 2) strengthening their faith so they resist all temptations, both the worldly everyday ones and the opportunistic ones by Satan himself.

Here's another analogy, with pop culture. Remember how in "Lord of the Rings" Gandolf is going crazy trying to open the door that is secured by a magic spell? He is reading the sign that says "Speak friend and enter." He thinks that if you are a real friend you will be able to guess the secret magic password phrase, but all his guesses are wrong. After a painfully long time he realizes that the password IS to speak "friend."

Satan and his temptations are exactly that obvious. There is no secret profound "battle" between humans and Satan or other "evil forces," one where humans must "help out" the obviously hapless God who is just not handling things without the supposed wisdom and combativeness of humans. You just don't pick up the temptations of Satan; it really IS AS SIMPLE AS THAT. Thinking you are battling him personally and that God is just kind of hanging around waiting to see what happens IS one of Satan's most effective temptations: "Guaranteed to work on saints and sinners alike."

I hope that you have found this thought provoking and helpful. Read the Bible (or Qur'an, of course, for my Muslim friends). It really is that simple. Fear of God and humility regarding the puniness of humans compared to the All Knowing of God is the best protection from temptation, such that those who attain it barely notice temptation even if there was a ton of it piled in front of them because, like those particles of dust, the truly faithful and humble just don't even notice worldly or Satan provided temptations.

Bible Reading: Proverbs 4:1-9

Hear, O children, a father's instruction, be attentive, that you may gain understanding! 2. Yes, excellent advice I give you; my teaching do not forsake. 3. When I was my father's child, frail, yet the darling of my mother, 4. He taught me, and said to me: "Let your heart hold fast to my words: keep my commands, that you may live!

5. "Get wisdom, get understanding! Do not forget or turn aside from the words I utter. 6. Forsake her not, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will safeguard you; 7. The beginning of wisdom is: get wisdom; at the cost of all you have, get understanding. 8. Extol her, and she will exalt you; she will bring you honors if you embrace her; 9. She will put on your head a graceful diadem; a glorious crown will she bestow on you."

How to approach the "right religion" question

I was listening to a certain talk show where he was rerunning a segment where callers described their experience at converting from their original religion, to a different faith, and then back to their original faith, or yet another conversion. Like my blog post earlier today about whether God is strong enough to defeat evil, I detected an urgent underlying assumption about not only this question of finding the "right religion," but also the hidden error in even looking for the "right religion." That may sound strange but here we go with my explanation, because this is also a problem of what sounds logical is actually disguising huge potential errors and very wrong paths to finding God.

Here is an analogy to understand the problem, and huge pitfall, of having a "seeking the right religion" orientation. Suppose that you are an infant during World War II and due to the Holocaust you have been separated from your father. You grow up without having memories of him and all that you know is his name; you have no idea what has become of him. The years go by and you grow up, perhaps with the family who sheltered you, and they may even have adopted you. You still do not know what had happened to your father, if he died, or if he lived, where he is now. You become educated and grown up, and now have enough income, maturity and will power to seek your father.

Now that you have imagined this situation, and put yourself in this person's shoes, let me ask you a question. Are you seeking your father to 1) find out who he is and where he is because he is your father, or 2) because you hope that he has some money stashed away that if you present yourself to him, you can have it?

Wow, doesn't reason number two sound crass and totally wrong? Obviously the child, now a young man or woman, wants to find his or her real father, for love, for kinship, for a real relationship or, if he has indeed died, closure and honoring of his memory. So clearly reason number one is why the child now grown seeks his or her father, torn from him or her in war and in the horror of the Holocaust.

Without being mean, and I really am not being mean at ALL, let us look at the consequences of reason number one or reason number two. The person who seeks for reason number one is overcome with joy when he or she finds out what has happened to his or her father, even if the news is not good, for at last he or she knows the truth.

The person who seeks for reason number two is also happy when he or she finds who he or she THINKS is his or her father, especially if he or she is now endowed with possessions or money given to him or her by the living father, or inherited by him or her if the father is deceased. He or she is glad that he or she found the right dad.

What might go wrong with reason number two? What if the father has no treasure, no assets, to share at all with the seeking son or daughter. Is the joy in the reunion, or the closure, diminished? Obviously yes, if that was the driving motivation. A second problem is being certain that this is the actual father and not mistaken identity. Might the presumed son or daughter be tempted to believe that the prospective actual father who has assets is indeed the father, even if further research shows mistaken identity? And might the actual prospective father be dismissed as not being the actual father if the prospective son or daughter is looking through a certain set of expectations, thinking their actual father MUST surely have money to share?

=== When the objective of the search for the "right one" is established upon receipt of reward, rather than determining the truth, great error is likely to be introduced.

This is the problem with those who seek the "right religion" rather than those who seek "the truth." People seek the "right religion" for reasons that sound valid, but if you take a closer look, you find they have great potential for error:

o They want the "right religion" so that they have the best outcome (presumed rewards for faithfulness in both life and after death). If you are a Christian that might mean you want the "right religion" to be "saved;" if you believe in reincarnation you want the "right religion" in order to try to manipulate a "better rebirth" in a "future life;" and if you are a New Age pagan or whatever you might be hoping to find the "right religion" so you can be combating the "correct alien menace." :-(

o They want the "right religion" because it is the one that "feels right" and "comfortable," and is "harmonious with their lifestyle."

o They want the "right religion" because it is the one that "answers their questions" and "gives them gifts, charisms, special powers and abilities, and knowledge that 'others are not privy to."

You can now see that those reasons all sound logical, but are huge temptations to accept as being the "right religion" whichever "faith" scratches the itch and presumably grants the reward you seek. Thus the Holocaust surviving son or daughter might genuinely think the guy with the most money really is their father and dismiss poorer guys ("he doesn't look like me anyway") and not bother with a paternity test.

===When one seeks the truth rather than the "right religion," one never finds the "wrong religion" because the truth is a built-in paternity test.

Suddenly, when one seeks the truth first, one becomes much more analytical and logical, even in a spiritual quest. You recognize that the correct father might not make you feel "comfortable" like you are hanging out with a pal. You recognize that the correct father may not have been salting away lots of money just to give to you as a reward for "finding him." When you seek the truth, you seek the truth, and you will find the truth.

I'll let you contemplate this, for you can fill in the blanks of what I would write here, of the different ways that the "right religion" can "feel right" or "sound right," but if you have an agenda other than the truth, it is a religion that is compatible with your wishes and not, instead, the truth. Here is scripture for further reading. NOW you can understand these passages in the Bible.

[Jesus said about God] Sanctify them in the truth. Thy word is truth. John 17:17

[Jesus said about his followers] And for them I sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. John 17:19

By way of definition and better understanding, the term to be "sanctified" means that a person is set aside for God's work. Anyone who with determination and honesty sets him or her self aside to do God's work is sanctified. Sanctification is not removal from secular life. People who truly follow God as he actually is, and who always put God first, striving (even when they fall some) to do God's work are sanctified.

Jesus is thus giving through these assertions some logical development that his listeners and future generations can hear and believe the truth. There is even some Greek deductive reasoning in what Jesus says ;-) Jesus is saying:

A. A person is sanctified (follows God) when he or she seeks the truth. "Sanctify them in the truth."

B. All that God says and reveals is the truth. "Thy word is truth."

C. Jesus has sanctified himself, as he is dedicated to following God, who is the truth. "And for them I sanctify myself..."

Therefore, in conclusion, logically, so that since God is the truth, Jesus has sanctified himself to God, those who believe all that Jesus says and does are now also sanctified to God in the truth. "...that they also may be sanctified in truth."

Just as an aside, even though Jesus as he lived was preaching to Jews, obviously many who listened to him were not Jewish and many of those were educated in Greek philosophy and logic. All who heard this would have had their socks knocked off, as Jesus was also "speaking their language" by using deductive reasoning based on clear assertions and classic Greek logic.

All you who read and love the scriptures, after understanding this you can read John 17 and it will speak to you, in Jesus' words, as it has never spoken to you before, as you will see the threads of how Jesus brings the fabric of truth together as the basis and foundation for faith. Jesus explained that faith comes from truth first. Jesus explains that the miracles and the works, and the explanations of his fulfillment of all the scriptures of prophesy from the very beginning are given by God as truth first, and then secondly the foundation of faith.

That is the profound difference between those who seek the truth first, and those who seek an image of what they consider and assume to be "the right religion."

Let me now ask one further question. Many argue that all religions lead to God. Really? You mean if the Holocaust son or daughter just tags along with any potential male of the right age that he will serve as their "actual father?" Really? No, untruthful roads do not lead to God. That does not mean that God does not forgive those who grew up in untruthful circumstances, for only God knows how he judges those who are raised without knowing Him as he truthfully is. However, God will of course be stern to those who do not attempt to discern the truth first. The Qur'an, by the way, is also, using different style of wording, focused on truthfulness first, and faith as the natural outflow second.

Surah 10:32-33 This then is Allah, your true Lord, and what is there after the truth but error; how are you then turned back?
Thus does the word of your Lord prove true against those who transgress that they do not believe.

This passage from the Qur'an echoes very much the flow of logic that Jesus uses. Here the logic flow is:

The true God is the true God.
If one rejects truth in any matter, the alternative to truth is therefore error.
How does one return to believing the truth if one believes in error?
One does so by observing the results of the proof of truth, compared to the lack of results among those who believe in error.

There is the famous saying "The truth shall make you free."

Jesus therefore said to the Jews who had come to believe in him, "If you abide in my word, you shall be my disciples indeed, and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:31-33.

Again, Jesus uses the logic whereby if one abides (lives within) the words of Jesus (who has sanctified himself to no other purpose than to serve God, who is the Truth), then one becomes disciples of Jesus, and thus likewise know the truth about God also. Furthermore, the truth is liberation from slavery, the slavery of error and of sin. Jesus explains why truth liberates those who are enslaved (and don't even know it) in John 8:34-38, and this becomes an extended debate with those who don't understand that they are enslaved because they don't recognize the truth when it is speaking to them, either from God himself or Jesus.

So here is the error in logic of believing that "all faiths" "lead to God." "All faiths" do not contain equal amounts, if any, of truth, anymore than all men of a certain age and region are therefore the prospective son's or daughter's actual lost father. People are confusing good behavior with truth! Perhaps "all faiths" assert certain consistent moral codes and behaviors. That does not mean that all of them are the "right faiths" and it certainly does not mean that they are equally "the truth." The prospective son or daughter may have a happy life with the "any man will do" father, until years later they discover that while they had their happy life their actual father was unrecognized by them. Oops.

Trust the truth. Anyone who is the least bit mature wants to know the truth of things, not error, misunderstandings, lies and false leads. The truth is the truth (anything that is not the truth is false and an error). The actual truthful matter leads one to the actual God of truth. Believing in error or falsehood leads to an erroneous path to an erroneous world view, containing an incorrect and incomplete understanding of the truth about God and the truth of God.

To explain a bit more about the temptation to follow what "feels" like "nice" beliefs since they are "moral" consider this. Suppose the seeking son or daughter asks a resident if their lost father lives in a certain village. Suppose the villager thinks, "Hmm, I know a really nice guy who is a lonely man. I'll tell this seeking child that I know for sure that man is their actual father, even though he isn't. In fact, I am doing a good deed!" Again, the seeking child may have a great life with the wrong father, but what happens to the actual father who never sees his child again?

THAT is the risk of not seeking the truth first.

I hope this has been and will be helpful to you and yours.

Bible reading: Revelation

And I saw that the Lamb had opened the first of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying, as with a voice of thunder, "Come!" And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and he who was sitting on it had a bow, and there was given him a crown, and he went forth as a conquerer to conquer (Apocalypse 6:1-2).


Um, by the way, that is a bow, as in bow and arrows, and not "take a bow" as in that dreadful "Madonna's" song LOL. As the Lamb (Jesus Christ) is sending the first horseman with a bow from heaven, that is a spiritual bow of conquest. It remains to be seen how that is achieved in reality, not in people's cult sociopathic imaginings.

Bible reading: Luke 1:51-52

He has shown might with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and has exalted the lowly.

Bible reading: Genesis 37:23-27

When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of the long tunic he had on.
They seized him and threw him into the cistern, which was empty and dry.
Then they sat down to eat.
Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ismaelites coming from Galaad, their camals laden with gum, balm, and myrrh, with which they were on their way down to Egypt.
Then Juda said to his brothers, "What is gained by killing our brother and concealing his blood?
Let us sell him to the Ismaelites..."

Understanding Jesus' words and other dialogue

Here is another quick thought where I'm going to point you all in a direction but not go through extensive scripture citation.

When one reads the scripture, specifically the Gospels and the writings of the Apostles, one realizes that Jesus and the disciples frequently quote from and reference the Biblical writings of the prophets. These writings are what Christians call the Old Testament of the Bible today. The Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) were deeply studied by pious Jews of the time of Christ, of course. The Gospel tells how the scholars at the Temple admired and were astonished by the knowledge of the young boy Jesus.

Most Christians when asked to name an example of Jesus citing scripture would think of the famous exchange between Jesus as he fasted in the desert before commencing his public ministry and Satan, who tried to tempt Jesus away from his mission. This is recounted in Matthew 4:1-11.

Here is the point that I'm going to make for you to consider.

Whenever anyone "cites scripture" (to use a modern expression that everyone takes for granted these days) they did not do it with the technique or attitude that people utilize today. Today people having "dueling scripture" mentality that is based upon "knowing where to look for 'the answer' in the Bible" and thus they center upon (somewhat pridefully) citing the "numbers" (book, chapter and verse). No one, not Jesus, not the Apostles, nor Satan himself, did that during Biblical times. No one said, "If you look in scroll number four and read the tenth sentence it says etc etc etc." People simply said "It is written that..."

Then the devil took him into the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, "If thou art the Son of God, throw thyself down; for it is written 'He will give his angels charge concerning thee; and upon their hands they shall bear thee up, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "It is written further, 'Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God'" Matthew 4:5-7.

Read for yourselves any place in the New Testament where scripture is cited and you will see that no one gave reference points, such as the book's name, the chapter or the verse, and virtually all used the unchallenged opening phrase to their quotation "it is written."

Why is this important and why am I pointing this out tonight in this blog entry?

I've repeatedly advised my readers that one cannot understand God's words, whether in the Bible or the Qur'an, unless one understands the context of the times. Most people could not read or write and the word of God was an oral experience for them, as God's word was given to the people by the priests, and learned verbally from scholars and family members. No one had the mindset that they had to "prove it is 'in the Bible'" by citing chapter and verse (or scroll or line). So Satan cites scripture and Jesus gives a counter citation, but neither says to the other (duh) "where does it say that in the Bible?" The Bible, of course, did not exist in the chapter and verse form that Christians use today and that is my point.

If one wants a truly authentic emulation of Jesus and the disciples, one needs to read and comprehend the entire Bible, not memorize the key "trick phrases" and citations that bolster one's familiar arguments and beliefs. No one challenged each other "where does it 'say that'" back in the times of Jesus because no one would even think of incorrectly citing scripture.

In other words, authentic knowers of God's word are not "defensive" in their attitudes, as many are today.

So Satan cites scripture without even saying "where" that scripture comes from and "who said it" and about what. In return, Jesus does the same thing, citing scripture without saying who said it and "where it comes from."

Generations of Christian scholars (yep, those early church fathers, both Catholic and Orthodox) performed detailed study of the scripture and footnoting so that future generations would know who and what Jesus and the others were citing.

So if you have an annotated Bible, you can determine by reading the footnote that Satan was citing from the Book of Psalms, while Jesus replied citing Deuteronomy.

Do you understand the two points that I am trying to make? The first point is that neither Satan nor Jesus "came prepared with citations up their sleeves to have that debate." Both so well know the scripture that when the dialogue took place, each could think of the most pertinent citation to make on the spot. How many people do that today? Rather, moderns are proud that they have "pre loaded scripture" that they can cite chapter and verse for the most familiar of purposes and well worn paths of debate, rather than understanding the meaning of the entire Bible, and then drawing from it as needed on the spot, regardless of the occasion for Biblical reference. So if one really wants to be "like Jesus" or the "genuine Apostles," one would have to have mastery of the entire Bible in its content and context, not hopping around extracting and memorizing favorite useful sayings, like they are bullet points for debate cues.

The second point is the temptation that an index system (chapter and verse) provides to those who distill everything into numbers and punch lines. Whenever humans have a technological advance, there is always a plus and a minus. The plus to having written Bibles that are inexpensively printed and able to be read by all is that obviously it is the great equalizer that rich or poor, all can have God's word to have and reference. The minus is that the word of God becomes less of an atmosphere that one is verbally immersed within and becomes, simply put, another intellectual tool.

A reverse snobbery takes place. How often do you see a bumper sticker with just a citation rather than the words? For example, you'd see the above dialogue as a bumper sticker that simply says "Matthew 4:5-7." Those who are "in the know" would see that bumper sticker and recognize that the people who owned that car are citing that verse for some reason known to them. But where is the knowledge (remember, knowledge is a gift of the Holy Spirit, not of humans' own doing) in saying "Matthew 4:5-7?" Rather, it is tempting to be smug, inviting those who know that verse by number to see your bumper stick and think "Oh, what a great Christian I am; I know what topic they are citing." If you are really of the "texting" and LOL generation, one can say to one's friends "457" and that would be a code word for "Satan and Jesus debating" or "Jesus being tempted." Those who are snide could given themselves user names such as Brit457 and those "in the know" would realize that "Brit" is calling him or herself a tempter, or a refuter of Satan.

Humans are like huge walking slippery slopes of ice where it seems that they cannot resist any temptation to parse or to package the complex and thoughtful and meaningful into sound bytes and killer debating points and eventually smug self referential code talk.

This is why I really avoid that mindset and virtually never walk around citing scripture. I have to painfully look up in the Bible every time I cite scripture (even the ones I often blog about) since my mind just refuses to think of the Bible as a series of numbered "points" to make.

All of you need to realize that it is "not Biblical" to cite scripture in a numeric, catchphrase, or "prove it to me" type of way. People (even Satan) were expected to know the fullness of scripture and then ad hoc state "it is written" a truthful statement or paraphrasing from the scripture, without even "showing off" who said it in the first place. I mean, in Matthew 4:5-7, Jesus is citing GOD, but Jesus himself does not say to Satan, "Well, God himself said the following on the fifth scroll first turning first line....." Everyone was authentic Biblical scholars at that time and it would never occur to anyone to feel they have to state exactly word for word and number by number who said what "in the Bible."

Jesus said to him, "It is written further, 'Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God'" (Matthew 4:7)

Jesus is "citing" the following:

"You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test, as you did at Massa" (Deuteronomy 6:16).

Suppose that debate was taking place today? Can you not well imagine certain Christians who would (in playing Satan's part) reply to Jesus:

1. Where does it say that? Cite me the book, chapter and verse.
2. You did not quote correctly, so your knowledge of scripture is imperfect.
3. Hmm, well, so God did say that, but he is referring to a specific form of putting God to the test (as at Massa). Doesn't that mean that other forms of testing God are "OK?" I mean, wouldn't God have SAID in "any way" if he meant in any way?
4. Boy Jesus, you sure missed the point of what God was saying. I bet you could not even find Massa on a map.

I wish I was joking or being droll but I am not.

Likewise, Jesus did not "correct" Satan's citation of scripture, as Jesus knows full well what Satan is citing and its context and pertinence.

'He will give his angels charge concerning thee; and upon their hands they shall bear thee up, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone' (Matthew 4:6).

For to his angels he has given command about you, that they guard you in all your ways. Upon their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the asp and the viper; you shall trample down the lion and the dragon (Psalms 90:11-13).

Jesus could have said:

1. Hey Satan, always cite what book, chapter and verse, because otherwise we don't know if "God really said that."
2. Satan, you miss the point. That foot on stone thing is just one example of how God will guard me in "all" "ways." So why are you picking out one of the examples in Psalms 90 to test me with? Why not have me step on a few snakes too, etc.

Isn't that ridiculous, if either had challenged the other in those ways? Yet, be honest. Aren't SOME of you reading this going to yourself, "Oh, hey, that would be a 'good point' if either Satan or Jesus challenged the 'validity of the citation.'"

How foolish and near sighted are the moderns of today, even those who have genuine faith in their hearts.

This is why I taught this particular lesson tonight, so that you meet and recognize your danger of being easily tempted head on. All I had to do was play upon the anal compulsive and "making the point" usage of God's scripture as a play ground for word smiths, numerologists and yes even the obsessive compulsive (or their opposite, the sloppy) faithful and you see how easily the refuting of Satan by Jesus would have been ruined if it was put in modern "standards" and the all too common vernacular.

Admit it. If Jesus was standing in front of you and "cited scripture" and one or two of the words varied from what you had in your hands printed in "your" version of the Bible, a seed of doubt about Jesus would be planted in your heart.

It is for that reason that Jesus came when he did in the times that he did, when people were verbal and filled with the spirit of context, not of word smithing and argumentative, defensive "superiority." That is why people said "it is written" because people were getting the accurate message of God across to each other, but not measuring accuracy by ridiculous word plays and number games. Jesus knew that Satan knew that Satan was citing just one example of how God would be "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust" (Psalms 90:2) so a "gotcha" moment would be pointless since the point was not to parrot words, but to try to apply scripture to a challenge to Jesus. Likewise Satan did not challenge Jesus that "the prohibition against testing only applies to Massa" because obviously Satan knows that God was forbidding all testing of him, and only mentioning "Massa" so that the people would keep that specific chastisement fresh in their memories.

People: you cannot evangelize nor bolster your own faith and the faith of others if you are using "gotcha" techniques in your day to day discourse and even your fundamental understanding of God's word in scripture. There is a profound difference between being accurate and anal (pardon my being so indelicate but the modern vernacular among the young has changed so much that I can't convey the message without using their common lingo). Likewise there is a profound difference between knowing God's entire word and his context and having preloaded favorite scripture debating points.

I hope that you have found this helpful.


Another example.....(extra credit, LOL)

And Paul said, "I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, 'Thou shalt not speak evil of a ruler of thy people' (Acts 23:5).

Paul is referencing:

"You shall not revile God, nor curse a prince of your people" (Exodus 22:27).