K081. Jesus is The Word who came in the flesh (4)

This is the fourth time I talk about Him. The Word who came in the flesh is a great commandment; not just a great mystery as I have said in K076. I will explain later.

Mat 17:5-7 KJV  While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
I can still hear the Lawless One keep telling us, "No, God did not tell us to hear any commandment or law from Jesus; God just tell us to 'hear His son' or 'hear' only. Jesus did not give any command to the disciples when He gave only the gracious words or positive words and ask them to 'arise and be not afraid' in Mat 17:7."

Is it true that God did not give us any command to obey Him? No, it is the lie of the Lawless One. I can quote many Bible verses to show why it is a lie. It is a lie to say that hearing Him is equivalent to hearing no more law, no more prophets, or no more keeping of God's commandments:
Mat 4:4 KJV  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
Joh 7:16-17 KJV  Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.  (17)  If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
.. ..

I can quote many more Bible verses, but today we will just 'hear' Mat 17:5 only and discuss if Mat 17:5 is a commandment itself? Many of us cannot deny that it is clear command from God to hear His Son. However, if we can hear or see beyond the surface, we should know that it is not just a command to hear only; but we see Jesus as 'God's Commandments' too. Hence, we will hear 'Him' and keep 'God's Commandments' in our hearts and minds too (based on Heb 8:10, 10:16). And,if we keep His Commandments in our hearts and minds, we must do them too; otherwise, we have not really heard Him.
Mat 7:15-24 KJV  Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  (16)  Ye shall know them by their fruits. .. (21)  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven .. .. (24)  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

Some believers may follow Jesus closely in the beginning. But they departed when they heard more from Jesus and they realized that they could not accept or obey Him totally. It will just show that they cannot bear any fruit:
Joh 6:26-65 KJV  Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled .. (59) These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.  (60)  Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? .. (66)  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.


Jesus is The Commandment of God
Jesus is the commandment of God not only because God said, Hear Him (when we hear Him, we hear God); but also because the way Jesus, Moses, and Elijah were shown together in the Lord's transfiguration. We can see something significant not only in the physical and spiritual realms, but also in the sequence of the Lord's
1. transfiguration (appearance of the law and the prophets)
2. prayer at Gethsemane (offering of burnt incense)
3. crucifixion (offering of the Lamb sacrifice)
4. shedding of His blood (offering of the blood sacrifice)
5. body in the tomb (The Word in the 'ark')
6. resurrection on the 3rd day (The risen Word and Christ)
I have explained that the above could be the pictures and sequence of how Jesus fulfilled all the law of sacrifice under the Old Covenant. When His body was laid in the tomb with two angels by His sides (Joh 20:12), the tomb could be a picture of the Ark and His body, the picture of the Commandments, the Manna, and the Rod in the Ark. He became the Word in the Ark.

I think the following Bible verses did explain why the Word, the transfiguration, and what John saw or heard could be the picture of the tabernacle or the ark:
1. Joh 1:14 LITV  And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. And we beheld His glory, glory as of an only begotten from the Father, full of grace and of truth.
2. Mat 17:1-5 KJV  And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,  (2)  And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.  (3)  And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.  (4)  Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.  (5)  While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

Moses came first with the Commandments, then Jesus came as the Manna of God, but the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of the prophets will come in the resurrection power of Christ:
1. Moses - is a type of the law or God the Father who is the LAWGIVER. Jas 4:12 KJV  There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another? Joh 1:17 KJV  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
2. Jesus - is a type of the manna or God the Son who is also the bread of life or the LIFEGIVER. Joh 6:48-63 KJV I am that bread of life.  (49)  Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.. .. (63) It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
3. Elijah - is a type of the budding rod or God the Holy Spirit who is the POWERGIVER, who brings spiritual birth, resurrection, and restoration in the kingdom of God. Joh 3:5 KJV  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Act 1:8-9 KJV  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you ..

Rev 22:17 KJV  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Hence, I believe that after the transfiguration, Jesus was no longer the same in a different realm, even though He is still the same yesterday, today, and forever. He was probably walking with the Spirit of the law and the prophets, and He was still the Son of man. He was considered as the 'triune' Word or the 'complete' God in the flesh:
Joh 1:14 KJV  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (John was referring to the transfiguration when they saw the glory of the Begotten Son and heard the voice which commanded them to hear Him)
1Ti 3:16 KJV  And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Today many preachers argue vehemently and say, "Jesus is 100% man and 100% God. Jesus is the centre of our life. We believe that Jesus has come in the flesh. We preach the name of Jesus more than anything. We do many miracles in His name .. We can never fall away, we can never be the antiChrist .. "
I will tell them, The more you need to argue and boast, the more you need to examine yourselves. Do you truly believe that Jesus has come in the flesh and that God's words and commandments have come in the flesh too? If you would just confess it verbally without the true conviction of doing what the Word said, you have not followed the Word who has become flesh. Repent.


'We do not live by bread alone' - today it is still a command of the Lord in the heart of a believer
I can hear the Lawless One still arguing, "But God said, 'Hear ye Him'. It  means 'hear Him only'. It means hear the positive words, hear the gracious words, hear the words of life; not any do's and don'ts, warnings, or judgement, like the Ten Commandments. Yes, we agree totally that Jesus is the bread of life. Hence, you should ask for the 'bread', cash, and prosperity as the sons of God; but the Bible did not tell you that He is the commandment. If he is the bread of life, you should only hear the words of life, the words of 'bread', or the words of wealth and prosperity; not the words of God's commandments."
I will tell him, You had lied once when you said to the Lord to command the stones to become bread (and told Him not to think of any God's command). That's why the Lord reminded you about His commandments and said,
Mat 4:3-4 KJV  And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.  (4)  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Now, I will still tell you the same command. We do not live by 'bread' alone; but by every word or command of the Lord. The Bible verse itself, Mat 17:5 which you quoted, is a God's command. God Himself confirmed it and told us to hear His Son. In another words, His Begotten Son is His commandment; and whatever He said, we hear. If you are still not clear, I said this again: Jesus confirmed and said that He is
1. the Bread of life and
2. the Resurrection; but God Himself confirmed that Jesus is
3. His commandments, 'hear ye Him'
Joh 11:25-26 KJV  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:  (26)  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
Hence, the commandments that we hear are not just the Ten Commandments; but every commandment that Jesus said although He would include the Ten Commandments too. It's because He now dwells in us as God's commandments which are written on our hearts (Heb 8:10, 10:16)

I don't think you can say that we are boasting if we hear Him and obey every word that He said, or hear Him by doing and keeping all that He said or commanded. In another words, whatever He said, we hear and we do. If you said that this is boasting like the Israelites who did said, 'All that the Lord commanded, we will do', you are lying:
Exo 19:8 KJV  And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
Didn't we know that Moses' face shone when he came down with God's commandments, and the people must hear God's commandments only? Jesus' face shone too when He came down with God's commandments. But where are God's commandments? He Himself is God's commandments, and we all must hear Him only! Of course, He is the bread of life, the resurrection, and the commandment too, He is The Word who came in the flesh; so, hear Him and do whatever He commanded. If we try to twist it or change it, we have rejected The Word who came in the flesh. May God help us.

In summary, we have just seen how the ministry of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is being fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We have seen the picture of the living ark which is a type of ark of covenant symbolised by two tablets of commandments, a bowl of manna, and a budded rod of Aaron. Today we can no longer find the ark of covenant, because the spiritual ark can be found in the hearts of the believers. However, can we still find any symbols similar to commandments, manna, or budded rod in the life of a believer or a church today? Yes,  we can still find the cross, the holy communion, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit in
manysome of the churches today. But we do not worship God with these things ritualistically or physically; instead, we do it spiritually, conscientiously, or meaningfully (we meant it) by
1. taking up our cross (obeying God's commandments),
2. taking the holy communion or water baptism (being born again)
3. taking the baptism of the Holy Spirit (being empowered by the Holy Spirit to preach repentance and do the works of restoration, especially in our age of deep darkness, corruption, and sins)
I believe that it is still the will of the Lord for us to do all these while waiting for His return to the churches.

Why do we need the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
It is not just because it is a command of the Lord to His disciples to tally for it; it is because the church needed it to preach what the Lord had commanded them to do:
Luk 24:45-49 KJV  Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, .. (47)  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.  (48)  And ye are witnesses of these things.  (49)  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

We have learned that God is the lawgiver, Jesus is the bread of life, and the Holy Spirit is the power-giver. We also know that the law has been given, salvation of Jesus has come, but have we received the power of the Holy Spirit?
Yes, when the Holy Spirit is upon us, we can see, feel, hear, or experience His power. I will not want to argue if speaking in tongues is the only sign or not. But, I will just ask, So far, have those who spoke in tongues shown the power of the Holy Spirit? Have they preached repentance with such power ? When Peter spoke, three thousand people were convicted and saved. That's the power of the Holy Spirit.
Act 2:37-41 KJV  Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?  (38)  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. .. (41) Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

Some may say that they show power in many things. But I believe that most of the believers (or every believer) in the early church were taught to preach repentance with the power of the Holy Spirit:
Mar 6:12-13 KJV  And they went out, and preached that men should repent.  (13)  And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.
Luk 24:47-48 KJV  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name..
Act 17:30 KJV  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
Act 26:20-21 KJV  But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.  (21)  For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill me.

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K080. Jesus will separate the believers from the 'believers'

He will not just separate the believers from the sinners only. How do we know that? If we read the Bible, we know that He has done it in the past and He will do it again in the future.

The following Bible verses are all about the separation:
Joh 6:65-67 KJV  And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.  (66)  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.  (67)  Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
Mat 13:40-52 KJV  As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.  (41)  The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity .. (44)  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.  (45)  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:  (46)  Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.  (47)  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:  (48)  Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away ..
Mat 22:9-14 KJV  Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage .. (11)  And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:  (12)  And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.  (13)  Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness ..  (14)  For many are called, but few are chosen.
Mat 24:40-51 KJV  Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left ..  .. (45) Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? .. .. (48) But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;  (49)  And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;  (50)  The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,  (51)  And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
There are many more Bible verses which talks about the separation, for example the separation of the sheep and the goats, the wise virgins and the foolish virgins, the wise servants who multiplied talents and the foolish servant who hid his talent, the first sickle to reap His harvest and the second sickle to reap with judgement in Rev 14, the strong church and the lukewarm churches in Rev 2-3, .. etc.


Many argue that those warnings are not for them
Many argue that the Lord will never cast any believers away or spue out any believers no matter what they do. They argue that all the Bible verses above can NEVER be applicable to them, the believers; but only to the sinners, the hypocrites, or the Pharisees. I will ask them, Did Jesus say that His words can never be applicable to you, to the believers, or to the churches? No, if He did not say so, please do not qualify yourselves and limit His words.
I know that we need to assure ourselves that we can never and should never be the evil servant who smite others, and ate, and drank; or be like the believer who became speechless without the wedding garment; or the tares, but we should be confident enough not to make wild speculations, change the Lord's warnings, and deceive ourselves with promises which the Lord did not make.

Please read all those Bible verses again and ask honest question, Can we tell the believers honestly that those Bible verses are not for them? No, I would be lying if I say that those Bible verses are not for them; but for the sinners who can never hear or accept the words of Christ.
1. Unless we are blind, we should know that Jesus specifically instructed that His words and warnings be given to the churches or believers; not the world (Rev 1:11). Many say that the warning of the Beast in Rev 13 and the two sickles of separation in Rev 14 are none of their business because they, the churches, would have been taken up in the rapture. According to their pre-tribulation belief, they argue that the word 'Churches' appears only in the first, second, and third chapters of Revelation; but after that, there is no more mention of the 'churches'. Well, this is a weak argument because there are many things in the Bible which were not mentioned, but can we conclude that they are not present or they does not exist, for example, the presence of the Holy Spirit? No, certainly not. Neither can we conclude that none of the Israelites died (or given birth) just because it was not mentioned before the Ten Commandments.
2. Unless we are blind, we should know that Jesus was warning the believers about His judgement on the unfaithful servant in Mat 24:48-51. Hence, it is meaningless for Jesus to give such warning to the sinners or the world who can never follow Him. Many argue that these warnings are not for the believers today; but for the believers of the early church in the past. I will ask them to read with the correct Bible context, Didn't you know that a lot of His warnings in the gospel and the book of Revelation were given as end time prophecies? If most of them are end time prophecies and warnings, how can we say that they are not applicable today or in the future?

Please think again, Does it make sense to put the 'No Smoking' sign in a night club, gambling club, or smoking club where everybody is a smoker? No. But, if we put the warning sign in a restaurant where majority of the people are non-smokers, can you argue that it is not applicable to you and therefore, it must be taken down? No.
Now, think again, Will you put the 'No Swimming' sign in a swimming pool which is open for swimming? No. Do you therefore conclude that the 'No Swimming' sign is useless and therefore it can never be used for any other pools? No, ridiculous. This shows how ridiculous is the argument of many preachers who do not know God's warning or commandment. God's warning is only for those who can keep His warning and obey His commandments. God would never give His warnings, commandments, His law, or His covenant, to the world who is already lost. The only command or law that He will give to the world is: His command to Repent (Act 17:30) and His law of Judgement.

Many still argue vehemently that all the laws and commandments of God are not for them based on the following Bible verses:
1Ti 1:8-9 KJV  But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully;  (9)  Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers ..
I will tell them, God's warnings and commandments are still for us today; whilst the law of judgement is for (against) the wicked (and the law is good). You may argue vehemently that you are more righteous than the lawless and therefore all God's laws (including the law of judgement) are not for you; but have you really repented and walked in His commandments?
Luk 13:2-5 KJV  And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?  (3)  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.  (4)  Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?  (5)  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

Many will still argue, "No, God's warnings and commandments are for the Old Testament believers. Today, New Testament believers like us are under grace and therefore we can never fall away. We don't even need to confess sin because we are so righteous (by the righteousness of Christ) that we can no longer sin. Moreover, Jesus has kept all the commandments for us so that we are always righteous effortlessly. Hence, who would still need God's warnings or commandments today? Jesus tell me to tell you that today we should preach more about grace instead of judgements and repentance .."
I will tell them, God told me to tell you that I cannot believe you. Too many greedy preachers, pastors, deacons, .., and believers have said the same thing, and yet we find that they break their marriage vows, divorce their wives, boast arrogant lies, preach false doctrine, and live like the kings (with luxurious cars and private jets). Come on, if you say that you cannot sin and you don't have to confess sin, you try to make God or Jesus a liar while you know that God has commanded us to repent (Act 17:30) and confess our sins (Luk 11:4). But we know that He cannot lie, so you are the liar instead:
1Jn 1:8-10 KJV  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  (9)  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (10)  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.


Jesus will separate the churches from the 'churches' too
Having known that there are Bible warnings to the believers, naturally we can say that there will be separation of the believer from the 'believers' who do not take heed or obey the warnings of Christ. I won't elaborate why disobedience is one of the worst sins; I hope that no one will argue with me on this (Remember King Saul's disobedience was judged severely by God even though he thought that he was doing fine when he defeated the enemies and brought in many great sacrifices for God. So, don't be a hard nut (to crack) like King Saul and think that we can disobey by Christ's sacrifice, by Christ's obedience, by misinterpreting Rom 5:19, and by abusing grace Rom 5:20). However, I will move on to elaborate on my original intention: i.e. to show how Jesus will separate those (believers) who will obey His doctrine and those (believers) who will not. There are many Religions, Cults, Satanism beliefs, and false beliefs today. But our focus today is not on those who have rejected the Bible openly. We are more concerned about those (believers) who still believe the Bible, but they do not walk in it totally. Of course, we know that many believers cannot agree totally on everything in the Bible, but based on the two most important doctrine: 'Repentance' and 'Grace', we can conclude that these are the two major concerns which we must address and discuss in depth if we want the people to be truly saved. The two groups of believers who are our major concerns today are:

1. The Roman Catholic Church (RCC)
The RCC have exaggerated, abused, and confessed repentance (penance) ritualistically. As a result, many of their believers have departed from the sound doctrine of Christ.

2. The Radical Grace Church (RGC)
The RGC on the other hand exaggerated the other extreme and abuse grace, even though they may preach it, confess it radically, and even worship it as their 'God' or 'Christ' with the hope that it will proper them, forgive them, teach them, and answer all their prayers in a radical and 'effortless' manner (without any repentance, obedience, or keeping of God's commandments). As a result, many of their believers have not only departed from sound doctrine; they have also become evasive, argumentative, and lukewarm in obeying and keeping the doctrine of Christ. Many think that RGC is a fictitious group of churches who are non-existent; however, I think that it could have subtly caused more harm and corruption to the doctrine of Christ than RCC could in the last days.

Although both RCC and RGC are the believers of the doctrine based on the New Testament, they departed very far away from the words and the doctrine of Christ. I've also heard that RCC has only subtly changed the Ten Commandments; but RGC would totally reject the Ten Commandments and mock at those who still do and teach them.

However, I won't say that everyone in RCC or RGC are unsaved just because they are still in RCC or RGC. Physically they may still remain in RCC or RGC, probably because of their loved ones. Many wanted to leave, but in the end they stay for the sake of their wives (as Lot did). I can empathize with them as they could have loved their wives or husbands too much to divorce them and attend another church which (they think) is no better than their existing churches as we understand that there are not many good churches around nowadays.
1Co 7:3-17 KJV  Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband .. .. (12)  But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away ..  .. (16)  For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?  (17)  But as God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches.

Hence, I believe that that is the reason why it is difficult to separate the believers now and we have to wait for the Lord to separate us (Mat 13:37-52, Mat 24:40-42).

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K079. Jesus shows us a God who loves sinners and judges sinners

But Satan shows us a 'God' who loves us so much (or so radically) that 'He' is no more a God.
Jesus shows us that God would want us to repent and turn from our sins.
But Satan shows us that God would just want to prosper us, serve us, or do like the idols or the 'gods' of this world.

A true and living God is a God who loves and judges
Please think, Which God would you like to choose? Sadly, many so called ignorant churches and pastors are still showing us a 'God' who is 'too good to be true' or who would just want to prosper us, serve us, and do like the 'gods' of this world too. Many could have rejected, ignored, or forgotten all the commandments of the Lord. They lie that all the preachers of God's laws would only want you to be poor when the truth is: the preachers of God's laws would only want you to obey Christ and keep God's commandments:
Mat 4:10 KJV  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Act 17:29-30 KJV  Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.  (30)  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
1Jn 5:2 KJV  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
But today a sinner or a believer does not have to be afraid of the holy God who judges us by the law or by His holy commandments. Why? It is because God's holiness is on our side. His righteousness will fight for us because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We do not need to downgrade God to a man made 'God' or to a 'God' who can never judge us. We just repent, and therefore, this is the gospel or grace apart from the law.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel to those who will repent
Of course, God's preachers would preach and even plead with every sinner to come to God and believe Him. But if the people will always negotiate and set their condition, "Except you allow us to just believe and full stop, we won't come to God" or "Except He is too good to be true to forgive us all our sins (including all the sins that we are going to commit in the future), He won't be our God. We believe only in the 'true' grace, 'pure' grace, or hyper grace that is preached by the preachers of grace", what will happen?

l will tell them, No, you do not believe in grace; you believe only in yourselves. You believe that you are 'Gods' and that God must show grace to you. But, if you truly believe that you are under the grace of Jesus Christ, you will know that you are under grace to repent and bear fruit (with works of repentance):
Luk 13:2-9 KJV  And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?  (3)  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.  (4)  Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?  (5)  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.  (6)  He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.  (7)  Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?  (8)  And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:  (9)  And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
Hence, being under His grace means you have no other choice but to repent in the Lord.

To repent is not to believe only (or vice versa)
But some 'smart' preachers think that they could give more choices to the people and say that "to repent is to believe, and to believe is to repent". They argue that their intention is noble as it can save more people; however, in the sight of God they are disgusting. It is because they twist His words to make it easy for the people who do not want to repent.
Of course, there is a big difference between 'believe' and 'repent'. There are many Bible verses which explain the difference. It can take pages to discuss and go through all of them again. However, I do not have time to do it now. I will just ask a simple question here: "We know that the Pharisees believed God, but would they repent?" or "The devil believes God too, but will they repent?" No. Isn't this clear enough to show us that they might believe but they might never repent; and therefore, repent is not believe and believe is not repent?
Jas 2:19-20 KJV  Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.  (20)  But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
Luk 18:11-12 KJV  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank (believe) thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.  (12)  I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

To repent is not to change your mind only
I will tell them, If you think that to repent is just to change your mind, you will be disappointed. Yes, your direct definition of 'metanoia' in Greek is 'change your mind'. However, when Jesus preached it, it is certainly not 'change of mind' in the mind of the Pharisees or the self-righteous; it is always the 'change of mind' in the mind of the SINNERS.
Luk 5:31-32 KJV  And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.  (32)  I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Now, please think, What's the difference between the change of mind in a sinner and the change of mind in a righteous person? Don't you think that the main difference is that the sinner needs to change his mind because he is not perfect, he has sins, and he needs to turn away from his sins? If this is the case, repentance from the sinners is always referred as their change of minds to turn from their sins. And this explains clearly why Jesus would only ask the sinners to repent.

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K078. Did Jesus tell us or give us the assurance of 'once-saved-always-saved'?

From the way Jesus frequently warned us about those who could fall away, I don't think Jesus had ever given us any 'once-saved-always-saved' assurance. Anyway it can never fit well in all His teaching or warning about the false prophets (who came from the believers), the tares (among the believers), the separation of the sheep and the goats (separation of the believers), the foolish steward (the believer), the foolish virgins (the believers), the foolish servant (the believer), the foolish believers, the foolish churches (in Rev 3), being diligent, and etc. Jesus has made it SO CLEAR for all of us to take heed and to live a diligent life.

However, we may still argue with one another today on this .. .. It may go on and on if we are still not cleared about what the Lord has already taught us, for example, on Paul's words in the following Bible verses:
Heb 6:4-6 KJV  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,  (5)  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,  (6)  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

We understand that there are two interpretations of the Bible verses above:
1. "If they are saved and they shall fall away again, they can never be re-saved again and again. Hence, saved believers can never fall. Or else this will put Jesus to an open shame"
2. "If they are saved and they shall fall away again, they can never be renewed again unto repentance. Hence, some believers can fall after rejecting repentance, and their subsequent 'repentance' (again and again) will only put Jesus to an open shame"

Yes, I know it is difficult to determine which of the above is the real interpretation of Heb 6:4-6 because of the construct of its words. So in such a rare occasion, we may need to resort to the use of Bible context by looking at the Bible verses after the passage:
Heb 6:7-8 KJV .. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:  (8)  But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.
The above could be a continuation of the previous passage which talked about those who shall fall away. Now, let us go back to our previous passage Heb 6:4-6 and find out which interpretation will fit well with its continuation in Heb 6:7-8.
I believe that the second interpretation will fit well with its continuation which talks about the judgement of both the saved believers and those who shall fall away. Obviously the second interpretation which mentions about repentance fits well with its continuation which also mentions about the fruit related to repentance too.

That's why we must be serious about repentance; if possible, we will guard our hearts not to lose our repentance. We don't make 'loose' repentance. Repentance is not 'cheap' because it is by the grace. It came by the grace of God. Hence, repentance is more than just physical confession of words or repetitive prayers that we made in front of the people. We mean it when we confess our sins before God and we ought to always (daily) keep this spirit of repentance as we walk in Him or walk after His commandments.

We do not just confess verbally; we must repent
Hence, I believe that when John told us to confess our sins, he did not mean only physical confession of words; he meant repentance (with confession, recognition, thinking, or admitting of sins before God):
1Jn 1:6-10 KJV  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:  (7)  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.  (8)  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  (9)  If we confess our sins (if we repent), he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (10)  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Of course, God would not just want us to confess sins verbally, repetitively, and meaninglessly without any repentant attitude. Now please think, If God would want everyone to confess his sins with the repentant attitude, can a believer 'overdo' it until it becomes an insult to Him? No, repentance is an attitude or process which must remain in every believer or us who have repented, and it is not a shame for us to confess sins or say 'sorry' to God if we need to !
This is how we should read the words of God with the Bible context.

Is it possible for the believers to reject repentance and preach it again superficially or 'lukewarmly'?
I said earlier in point 2. on the interpretation of Heb 6:4-6 above that some believers can fall after rejecting repentance (or because of their rejection of repentance). Did Paul talk about a fictitious group of believers who will come back again (with their own 'repentance') to put Jesus to an open shame after their rejection of Christ's repentance? Yes, Paul did say that it was impossible for them to be saved, to believe, and to preach repentance genuinely if they have rejected it; but it is still possible for us to find such people who will still come back and argue with us on their 'repentance' or mind changing philosophy today. Probably they were carnal believers who had rejected repentance many years ago or they could have departed from God's churches when they were young. But now they want to come back and claim that they know more about grace or repentance than God's preachers. But we know that they are not God's preachers or believers who have truly repented. They may even preach 'metanoia', repentance, or grace, with more dramatic definitions (eg. radical grace or hyper grace), but we know that they come back to preach the words of God with hidden bitterness like Simon's. They would take the gift of the Holy Spirit or grace for granted:
Act 8:13-25 KJV  Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done .. .. (18) And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,  (19)  Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.  (20)  But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.  (21)  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.  (22) Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.  (23)  For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.  (24)  Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.  (25)  And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.

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K077. Jesus has given us the command to repent and to preach it

Mat 4:17 KJV  From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Luk 13:5 KJV  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Mar 6:12 KJV  And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
Act 17:30-33 KJV  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:  (31)  Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness.. (32)  And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter.  (33)  So Paul departed from among them.

Rom 3:21 KJV  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets ..
Do we remember that Moses and Elijah were the two witnesses in the Lord's transfiguration? and they bear witness that the righteousness of God apart from the law can now come by repentance in Christ? Hence, It is still God's grace for righteousness to be given by repentance apart from the law; it is given without the law. But please think, Is it given without keeping any law? No, if we could be 'lawless' and did not have to keep any law, there is still one law we must keep - i.e. To repent (and walk in His commandments). So we are back to 'square one'; we can never run away or depart totally from keeping God's commandments, no matter how much we hate it.

Hence, to repent is the 'now' commandment or the new commandment, though it was the old commandment which we had from the beginning as we have heard (from the Lord) from the beginning:
1Jn 2:3-8 KJV  And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. .. (7)  Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.  (8)  Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.

'To repent' is a commandment of the Lord to walk after (all) His commandments. We still keep this commandment because this is love and this is the commandment that we have heard from the beginning: That we should obey it and walk in it.
2Jn 1:6-9 KJV  And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.  (7)  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.  (8)  Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.  (9)  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
Hence, Jesus did not make it easy for us to repent; He made it clear for us to repent.

How many of us really hear Him clearly today?
Mat 17:5-7 KJV  While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.  (6)  And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.  (7)  And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
However, how many preachers today really hear Him and preach what they hear from Him? Ironically many keep telling us to hear Him, hear Him only .., but they themselves would never hear Him or preach what they hear from Him. Sadly we realize later that many do not have the integrity with words. They are not really sincere; they will just want us to hear them only, .. .. hear their lawless doctrine, their self-righteous confession, their effortless prosperity, their no condemnation lies, their 'easy repentance', or their mind changing philosophies only.
Many argue, "No, God did not tell us to hear any commandment or law from Jesus; He just tell us to hear Him only. Jesus did not give any command to the disciples when He gave only the gracious words or positive words and ask them to 'arise and be not afraid' in Mat 17:7."
I will tell them, Come on. Do you really think that God would only want the disciples or us to hear only the 'gracious words' from Jesus at that moment? How about His commandments, His parables, His prophecies, or His warning later?
Of course, there are people who will believe them and follow them 'positively' or 'radically', but I won't envy them; I worry for them and pray that they can still repent.

Sound doctrine Vs Radical grace ?: Repentance did not come by the law

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K076. Jesus is The Word who came in the flesh (3)

This is the third time I talk about The Word who came in the flesh. It is a great mystery.
1Ti 3:16  And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

I do not know how to explain this. But the mystery of godliness is a mystery of The Word which the mystery of lawlessness cannot tolerate:
2Th 2:5-10 LITV  Do you not remember that I told you these things, I yet being with you?  (6)  And now you know the thing holding back, for him to be revealed in his time.  (7)  For the mystery of lawlessness already is working, only he is holding back now, until it comes out of the midst.  (8)  And then "the Lawless One" will be revealed, "whom" "the Lord" "will consume" .. (9)  His coming is according to the working of Satan in all power and miraculous signs and lying wonders ..

Is it possible for the evil to 'come in the flesh' to oppose the godliness in the flesh? The Bible has given us the answer:
Joh 1:14 KJV  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
2Jn 1:6-9 KJV  And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.  (7)  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.  (8)  Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.  (9)  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.

Many antiChrists and false prophets will rise in the end time, but one of them is very likely 'the evil that will come in the flesh' - the Lawless One or the Beast spoken by Paul and John. He will come in the flesh and (then) in the spirit to oppose the words and the works of God. Many theologians think that the Lawless one is a wicked man or a murderer with the thirst of killing and greediness for his own pleasure. However, please think, How many wicked men or murderers have died since the existence of men? Probably millions? But Paul and John would not be bothered if another millions of wicked men will come into the world. Of course, Paul and John was very concerned only about the 'one' who has the power to corrupt the teaching and doctrine of Christ from the church pulpits. Many still think that Hitler or king Nero was the beast because they were more wicked than all the millions of wicked men in the past. But I don't think they were a threat to the churches and the doctrine of Christ at all. The real threat comes from the Lawless one or the Beast who will speak or blaspheme with his 'flood water' (false doctrine) as spoken by John:
Rev 12:15-17 KJV  And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.  (16)  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.  (17)  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Many interpreted the above as the account of Jesus and his mother Mary fleeing from king Herod's persecution. However, I would think that this is the picture of how the churches would be 'attacked' by false doctrine, and later deceived by the Beast in the next chapter, Rev 13. Before the flood (in Rev 11), we have seen how the two olive trees were killed and resurrected (see my previous post in K058 and K073). I believe that it has great significance in the birth of the Church; because after the two olive trees were resurrected (together with Christ), the temple in heaven was opened, the ark was restored, and seven thousand 'men' in the spirit realm were slain:
Rev 11:13-19 KJV  And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.  (14)  The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.  (15)  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. .. (19)  And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

We know that the above would lead to the birth of the Church because immediately after that John wrote:
Rev 12:1-4 KJV  And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:  (2)  And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.  (3)  And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.  (4)  And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

There were two wonders in heaven: the wonder of the great birth of the Church and the wonder of the great dragon who had fought and  brought down one third of God's angels. The greatest wonder is: Now the dragon will have to fight with the Church or the child on earth. Being angry, he tried to go against the mother who bore the child. Who is the mother? Of course, she is not Mary; I believe that the mother here is the picture of the Holy Spirit because we know that the Church is also born of the Water (the Word) and the Spirit through the blood of Jesus Christ. Hence, having failed to fight against the Holy Spirit, the dragon will turn against the Church and against those who are on earth:
Rev 12:17 KJV  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

In Rev 12, we have probably seen the happenings in the spirit realm; but in the next chapter Rev 13, we are about to see how the dragon and the beast will influence us or persecute us in the physical realm:
Rev 13:1-18 KJV And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.. .. (11) And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.. .. (16) And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:  (17)  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.  (18)  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Who is the beast?
Is he a bird, a plane, or a superman? Or a man, a spirit, an organization, or a kingdom? It is an interesting question which we should not be afraid to explore and research. Only the beast and his false prophets are afraid that the believers will become too 'smart', judge his doctrine, and expose their deception; but God's preachers will always speak boldly without fear.
(See more writings on the beast from the video: https://youtu.be/qgES25Axojw?t=22m)

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K075. Jesus said, Good tree will bear good fruit

Mat 7:17-20 KJV  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.  (18)  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  (19)  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  (20)  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

Hence, a good tree can never bear bad fruit. But if we look around us, do we find the good trees bear good fruits forever? Of course, the good trees will always bear good fruits, but there are times when they will bear bad fruits or unhealthy fruits as they become old and unhealthy.
Obviously Jesus was talking about His 'trees' in the kingdom of God, spiritually; not physically. We may be those 'trees' now, spiritually; however, not physically. We can still sin and become 'bad'. We may not be always the good 'trees'. However, our hope is in Jesus Christ who has given us the spirit of repentance in Him. As long as we are obedient and willing to repent in Him and do His words, spiritually we will always be the good 'trees' in His eyes.

How do we know that Jesus was talking about repentance when He talked about the good tree or the good fruit? He has shown us that there is always connection between the fruit and repentance:
Mat 3:8-10 KJV  Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:  (9)  And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.  (10)  And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Mat 12:33-38 KJV  Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.  (34)  O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.  (35)  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.  (36)  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.  (37)  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.  (38)  Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee ..
The Pharisees who did not believe His repentance message would always say words or ask questions which only showed the lack of repentance in their hearts and lives.

Jesus was still talking about the fruit and repentance when He gave the following parable:
Luk 13:5-9 KJV  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.  (6)  He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.  (7)  Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?  (8)  And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:  (9)  And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.

Hence, Jesus will also judge the preachers based on what they preach (by their words) and the fruit that is in their hearts:
Mat 7:15-24 KJV  Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  (16)  Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?  (17)  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.  (18)  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  (19)  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  (20)  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.  (21)  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.  (22)  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?  (23)  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.  (24)  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

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K074. Jesus asked, Are you prepared to lose everything for me?

I have said that He did not tell us (everyone) to sell everything; but He did tell us (everyone) to take up our cross.
How about being prepared to lose everything for Him? Yes, I would think that He did say it or mean it too:
Luk 9:23-26 KJV  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.  (24)  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.  (25)  For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?  (26)  For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.

Losing our life is losing everything. So, do you agree that Jesus did tell us to be prepared to lose everything for Him? Of course, whether we will finally lose everything or not is not the question; the question is whether we are prepared to lose it for Him? If we are not prepared to lose everything for Him, we are still not willing to take up our cross for Him even if we are made poor for Him. Jesus would not want us to do it unwillingly. He wants us to have a heart that is prepared to lose everything for Him; not a heart that will keep everything for the old flesh. Hence, it is meaningless if we sing everyday that Jesus is the center of our hearts but we are never prepared to lose anything for Him.

Now, the final question: If we are prepared to lose everything, are we afraid to lose riches, comfort, prosperity, reputation, recognition, safety, security, salvation, favor, or grace? Of course not. If we have the mentality of losing reputation or favor, why should we be afraid of condemnation all the time? Why do we still need to hear vain repetition of assurance of riches, peace, no condemnation, favor, or hyper grace from many man's preachers over and over again? Why do we need to confess hyper grace, righteousness, prosperity, health, and wealth radically or ritualistically, or do like other religious people who do not know God?

I can say that we do not need to hear any of assurance of no condemnation from the 'very anointed preachers' and we can still prosper and find peace by the words of Jesus Christ. We can just do and teach His warnings, hard sayings, or commandments without feeling any condemnation. We have no secret. We simply repent and submit to His words.
Many people still want to cling on to the 'no condemnation' or 'hyper grace' messages because they are afraid of keeping the hard sayings and commandments of the Lord. Of course, we need assurance from the Lord when we are afraid. But if we always use the 'no condemnation'  messages to replace or 'push out' all the words and commandments of the Lord from our hearts, it simply shows that we have no faith or no willingness to keep them. Our argument that "a believer who has no condemnation, no guilt, or no conviction to repent will always have hyper grace to repent" is just a hyper excuse.

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K073. Jesus is The Word who came in the flesh (2)

This is the second time I talk about The Word who came in the flesh (after I first mentioned about Him in K058). I have said that The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory) John 1:14, and how in the glory we saw Moses and Elijah appeared with Him in the transfiguration, how the logos became the rhema, and how the glory of the whole universe (which encompasses all its logic, truth, principles, laws, and dimensions) was revealed in that awesome instant of blinding light and brightness. I believe that it was beyond our words or imagination. What I saw was the joining of the Spirit and the flesh, the communion of The Word, and .. ..
Initially, in my previous post K058, I saw Him only as the triune Word in that transfiguration when Moses and Elijah appeared. It was a glorious 'picture' of The Word with the life (manna), the commandments (tablets), and the power (rod) of God.

But now I can see Him as the triune God - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit in that transfiguration picture too. It is because I see:
1. God the Father as the lawgiver
Moses was not really the lawgiver or the judge; he was a delivery boy. Jas 4:12 KJV  There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?
2. God the Son as the bread of life
Joh 6:31-35 KJV  Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat .. (35)  And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life ..
3. God the Holy Spirit as the power of God
Luk 24:49 KJV  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Act 1:8 KJV  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Bible has shown us many 'pictures', but how many of us can really see? I believe that the Lord will not penalize us if we cannot see. But if we are the preachers and we need to preach the true and triune God, we cannot afford to miss this important truth. As God's watchmen in the last days, we should be diligent enough to know the scheme of the Lawless One or the devil. The devil will try to convince us to preach a God who is incapacitated or reduced to be only a 'bread' who has no commandments or power for them.

Do you remember how the Jews would only want 'bread'? Of course, they would only want any 'bread' which could fill their stomachs and prosper them. When Jesus showed that He was more than their bread, many could not take it. They departed.
Joh 6:26-27 KJV  Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.  (27)  Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed ..  .. (61) When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? .. (63)  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.  (64)  But there are some of you that believe not .. (66)  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

Similarly, there are lukewarm believers today who think that they can just enjoy life, believe anyway they like, and want only Jesus Christ to serve as their 'living bread' or the 'supernatural bread' that will satisfy ALL their physical needs as well as their spiritual needs. But they refuse to obey (keep) any God's commandments or seek for God's power to do His will. Unknowingly they have rejected God the Father or the Holy Spirit too. I do not think they are much better than those who do not know the Lord. They could be the lukewarm believers whom the Lord will spue out from His mouth in the last days.

Many may ask, "Are there really lukewarm believers who are so foolish that they will reject God the Father or the Holy Spirit, after they have received Jesus Christ?" I will say, Yes, you bet. It could be possible even if they will always confess, practice, or partake the 'holy communion' daily, ritualistically, or even faithfully. Have you heard of the preachers who preached about grace or the salvation from punishment of sins, but they would lie that it does not matter even if they remain in the rebellion of sins or the power of sins, and that they are still saved? They promised life through the partaking of their holy communion, but subtly and secretly they would preach against the holy commandments of God and the conviction power of the Holy Spirit? In another words, they believe in the 'bread'; but reject all the commandments of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. They would prove that the Holy Spirit does not have the power to convict them of sins, correct them, or rebuke them. But it is a lie.

I know that it is harsh to say it, but I have to say it: Christians who reject the commandments of God and the power of the Holy Spirit could be  'antiChrist' too. They are not Christians in the eyes of the Lord; they are the lukewarm.
2Pe 2:21 KJV  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2Pe 3:1-3 KJV  This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:  (2)  That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:  (3)  Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
Please think, What were the commandments (or the words spoken before by the holy prophets) during Peter's time? Of course, the Old Testament and the Ten Commandments! So, isn't it clear to us that under the New Testament, Peter would still want us to keep (or be mindful of) the holy commandments of God in the Old Testament?

Many people today agreed that Jesus is the living ark because the Bible show that He is the fulfillment of the words of God in:
Exo 25:18-19 KJV  And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat.  (19)  And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end: even of the mercy seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof.
Joh 20:12 KJV  And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
But many still ask, "We saw the ark or the manna (or the bread) only. Where is the commandments or the rod?"
I will tell them, Do you see the sequence? First we saw the 'manna of life', 'the tablets of commandments', and 'the rod of power' in the transfiguration, then the shedding of the blood, and the sacrifice of the lamb - all fulfilled through the life and body of Jesus. Why did I mention the sequence? Please think, Does it make sense to offer God's sacrifice before His altar was there? Hence, I believe that the transfiguration was also the formation of God's altar or ark in the spirit realm before the shedding of the blood and the offering of His sacrifice was made.

I believe that John was the disciple who saw, understood, and preached it the most. He wrote in:
Joh 1:14 KJV  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
2Jn 1:6-7 KJV  And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.  (7)  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

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K072. Jesus told us not to be religious (superstitious)

What is being 'religious'? Many of us would think that being religious is being hypocritical, legalistic, and old-traditional.

I cannot tell you if Jesus had said that we should not be religious in a particular Bible verse, but I can say Jesus did tell us not to be stupid. In another words, He told us to be wise, be sober, and be diligent.
Mat 10:16 KJV  Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

So, I would think that being 'religious' could also mean being so 'spiritual', so 'godly', or so 'holy', that we became superstitious, unwise, and 'superficial' before God and men, and that we could no longer relate well with anyone (especially the poor and the unlovely) around us :
2Ti 3:5-7 KJV  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.  (6)  For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,  (7)  Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Ironically many Christians claim that they are more spiritual than those who are religious when actually they themselves are more religious than others. Do we have any examples of the believers or preachers who believe or preach 'spiritual' things or 'godly' things so superficially that they themselves become more 'religious' (superstitious) than others? Yes, you bet, many. But I can only think of one example now:

I have heard of a preacher who always preach about the promise of longevity based on the story of Moses' death. Yes, Moses died at 120 years old. But the preacher turned it into a radical doctrine of mindless confession to convince the people that they can live up to 120 years old too, which is also part of his 'gospel of grace' or holy communion. The preacher would preach it, confess it, and prophesy it over his believers at the end of his benediction or holy communion. However, none of them could live up to 120 years old. He explained that it was a positive confession which would also increase their faith for more favor, more prosperity, and more blessings, even though he knew that none of them can ever live up to 120 years old (probably possible with the medical science only after many years later). But I would think that his promise (though it is based on the Bible story of Moses) is totally deceptive, vain, meaningless, superstitious, religious, and brainwashing. Please think, If he can convince us to believe in something that is so 'radically' superstitious, can he not introduce more heretic 'mother grace' confession or superstition which will keep the foolish and the ignorant mesmerized under his deception? I am afraid that many people are still not aware of it.

Hence, if we find that the majority of the believers in our churches have confessed vainly according to those radical teaching, eg. radical confession of 'grace', 'righteousness of God', or '120 years old', ritualistically for 500 times or even 5000 times, it may not be an overstatement for me to say that we could have become more 'religious' than those who are the religious (outside our churches). So, before we point at others and say that they are more religious, more law conscious, or more legalistic, ask ourselves if we have become more superstitious first.

If you are still not clear if Christians can be religious or superstitious, watch this video and tell me if this is religious or superstitious:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oXhYVm2MW8

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K071. Jesus said that there are different types of growth in the believers (Mat 13:3-9)

Many think that everything is 'once and for all' and full stop. Yes, the Lord died once and for all; but He told us that that is not for us. Instead, He told us that we need to take up our cross daily and die to ourselves daily (or deny our old self daily).
Luk 9:23-24 KJV  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.  (24)  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

Jesus said, That is not all; we need to grow too. In the parable of the seed, He showed us that we are still on a 'journey' to grow, or else He would not use
'different types of seeds'to describe us. Pardon me for the correction, 'it should be different types of growth to describe us'. Why? The seed that He gave us is the same; but the growth in us is different.

Many preachers preach that the parable of the seed described different types of people or different types of sinners in the world; so there are different types of good people and evil people in the world. But I see it differently. The parable describes different stages of growth in the believers:
1. Some could be still at the starting stage of sowing (or hearing and receiving the seed)
2. Some could be at the stage when they started to grow
3. Some have fully grown and they are now at the crucial period to bear fruits
4. Some have gone through the harsh weather and difficult period, and they have fruits

However, many are afraid to grow. So, some 'preachers' will come along and give them the promise of 'miracle seed' - the promise of 'instant fruit' without the need to grow. Please think, Is there such a seed or fruit? Probably yes, but it is certainly not the seed of God.

Many of us think that growing is not necessary. We think that, in the kingdom of God if we can receive salvation supernaturally, effortlessly, and once and for all, we can surely get everything instantly including our fruits. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Growing is still a major law or principle in the kingdom of God, which can never be obsolete. That's why Paul and James used the illustration of the farmers (or husbandman) to describe us in the churches (not those in the world). Hence, we still need patience to grow in the Lord:
Jas 5:7-8 KJV  Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.  (8)  Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
2Ti 2:3-7 KJV  Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.  (4)  No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.  (5)  And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.  (6)  The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.  (7)  Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

Many still argue, "Why do you say (accuse us) that we do not grow? Surely the Lord will never say that to us. If we are in the Lord, we will automatically grow. We don't need anyone to tell us to grow .. If grace can lead us to repentance automatically, grace will lead us to grow effortlessly too .."
I will tell them, Please grow up. I did not say that. Paul said that. Of course, he knew that there were many believers or babes who refused to grow, and it could be much more in the last days:
Heb 5:11-14 KJV  Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.  (12)  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.  (13)  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.  (14)  But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

There is a law in every seed. It will produce only one type of fruits. It is not a mystery and it can never change. Have you found any apple seeds which can grow oranges? No.
Similarly, a true believer will grow only one type of fruit - the fruit of the Spirit. It would be questionable if we always see the 'fruit' of the devil:
Gal 5:17-23 KJV  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.  (18)  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.  (19)  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,  (20)  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,  (21)  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.  (22)  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,  (23)  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Eph 5:6-11 KJV  Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.  (7)  Be not ye therefore partakers with them.  (8)  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:  (9)  (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)  (10)  Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.  (11)  And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

I will ask them, Is the fruit (in Eph 5) grown automatically by believing or thinking only. No, Paul said that you have to choose light and walk as children of light. It is not effortless, mind you; you have to crucify or die to the desires of your old flesh, and prove what is acceptable unto the Lord. Sometimes, there is stress and unpleasant situation when you may have to make big sacrifice to reject unfruitful works of darkness and reprove some people. Paul continued and showed us that it is a major effort to walk in God's righteousness (and bear the fruit in Eph 5):
Eph 5:15-21 KJV  See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,  (16)  Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.  (17)  Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.  (18)  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;  (19)  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;  (20) Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;  (21)  Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
Can we see all those efforts above? None of them tell us to do nothing and expect something.

I said that they is a law in every seed. Apart from the law to grow the same type of fruit, there is the law about how it will grow too, for example, how long it will grow, in what direction it will grow, in what way it will grow, and etc. Hence, there is always a way, a path, a rule, a fixed pattern, or a non-changing law for its growth. Similarly, there is a way, a path, or a law for the growth in a believer too.
Psa 23:3 KJV  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
2Pe 2:21 KJV  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
Hence, we know that the way or the path of righteousness will still follow and come from the non-changing law and commandment of God. The law of God is not the opposite of the Spirit of God; but it shows the way, the path, and the law of righteousness in Christ.

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K070. Jesus said, "One (good) thing thou lackest Mar 10:21"

Mat 5:16-19 KJV  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.  (17)  Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.  (18)  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.  (19)  Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 19:16-19 KJV  And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?  (17)  And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.  (18)  He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery ...

Yes, we are not saved by those laws; but, if we are truly saved by grace, we would know that those laws are good laws, we would approve (think well) of what God has commanded us, and we would walk in His commandments too.
2Jn 1:6 KJV  And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. (All His commandments are good because there is Love. Hence, we do not just walk in one commandment; we walk in all His commandments.)

Many preachers interpret Mat 19:16-19 wrongly by saying that "Jesus did not really mean it; but He said it with the intention to make it difficult for the young man to keep any law and to make him depart".
I will ask them, Did you read the Bible with 'shortsightedness'. No, Jesus did not tell the young man to reject the laws. On the contrary, Jesus told him lovingly that (he had done the right things) but one more thing he still lacked, i.e. to sell everything and follow Him. Hence, the tone of the Lord's words in those Bible verses show that 1.) obeying the commandments of God, and 2.) following Him, are both the right things for the young man to do.
Mar 10:17-21 KJV .. (20)  And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.  (21)  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

However, many preachers twisted it and say, "No, Jesus did not say it lovingly to the young man; He said it sarcastically and asked him to sell everything so that he became so condemned that he would depart without keeping any law from then on .."
I will tell them, Why would Jesus want to do that? To make him feel condemned and depart? No. Jesus would never do that. Jesus invited him to join Him (by selling everything), and this privilege or invitation was extended only to him, besides the twelve which He had chosen. Of course, selling everything and following Jesus was possible only when He was still physically around. Today we do not do it to follow Him physically; but taking up our cross is still spiritually applicable and it is still a commandment of the Lord for all men ('whosoever' believes in Him) to take up their cross and follow Him spiritually.

When the laws of God are in our hearts,
there will be many good things for us to do.
Heb 10:16-17 KJV  This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;  (17)  And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
God has changed our hearts; not His commandments. Yes, God has changed his covenant too; but not His commandments. He found fault with 'the law' which was the old law or the old covenant; but not all His GOOD laws which he has set from the beginning and the foundation the earth. (Now let's ask ourselves, are the Ten Commandments good laws? If they are good, they are still His laws in our hearts and minds)
We rejected His laws; but now we approve of His laws. We had no heart (and no mind) for His laws; but now we love and think of His laws. That has become the unique signature of God in all His people.
Many will still argue, "No, we do not keep the laws by doing and teaching them. Jesus had kept all the laws for us. So, when we keep Jesus in our hearts, we are actually keeping the laws in our hearts."
I will tell them, The hearts that truly keep Jesus and God's laws are not the hearts that will just hide or keep His laws somewhere'; but do and teach them:
Eze 36:26-28 KJV  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.  (27)  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.  (28)  And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
This explains perfectly how we keep His laws under the New Covenant based on Heb 8:10 and 10:16 too. We do not just 'keep'; we do and walk in them.

Many will still argue, "But how about the Sabbath law? Isn't it one of the Ten Commandments? Why don't you keep it by stopping doing anything on Sunday or Saturday? How about the law against the sin of adultery? Don't you watch pretty women and have the lusts? .. So, it is ridiculous to tell us we, the believers or sinners, to still keep the laws of God. Don't you know that Jesus has abolished whatever that is a burden to us? Why do you still keep teaching about the laws of God? They are the hard sayings which we do not have to obey .. we can't take it anymore .. please leave us alone .."
I think this is the common response from most of the sinners in the world. But when the preachers would join them and question the churches for doing, teaching, keeping, and loving the laws of God, you know the spirit of lawlessness has already started to work in many churches. Many preachers have corrupted the believers and taught lawless doctrine to churches as prophesied in the Bible:
2Th 2:5-12 LITV  Do you not remember that I told you these things, I yet being with you?  (6)  And now you know the thing holding back, for him to be revealed in his time.  (7)  For the mystery of lawlessness already is working, only he is holding back now, until it comes out of the midst.  (8)  And then "the Lawless One" will be revealed, "whom" "the Lord" "will consume" "by the spirit of His mouth," and will bring to nought by the brightness of His presence. .. (10)  and in all deceit of unrighteousness in those being lost, because they did not receive the love of the truth in order for them to be saved ..

I will tell them, Do you know that there are preachers who follow your lawless doctrine and argue, "The commandment not to kill is also obsolete. It is because we still kill the animals for food and the babies for medical purposes. It is hard to keep the law. All the laws are hard sayings. They are hard to follow, especially the Ten Commandments which are fully of do's and don'ts. Hence, God has to abolish them so that we do not need to keep them anymore"?
When the preachers start to question and preach like this, you know they are not from God. They are from the Lawless One! 

I will tell them, Of course, we do not keep the law of Sabbath legalistically, the law of not to kill everything, or the law of covering ourselves (like the Old Testament Jews from head to toes to avoid adulteries). But we still do the law of God in Christ and the laws in the Spirit:
1.) to have both physical rest (after a hard day's work or 6 days of works) and spiritual rest,
2.) to love the animals and stop insane killing of all lives, and
3.) to keep the sanity of our minds (or keep ourselves from addiction to pornography).
Keeping all these may be more difficult than keeping the Ten Commandments (for some people). But it does not mean that all the laws of the Spirit are obsolete too just because no one can keep them.

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K069. Jesus said, If you love me, feed my sheep

 In K048, I wrote, Jesus said, If you love me, keep my commandments. This He said it to all His disciples. But I realise that Jesus gave a different commandment to Peter after Peter denied Him three times.
Joh 21:15-17 KJV  So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.  (16)  He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.  (17)  He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

I do not write to tell you that you must keep His commandments again (I believe that all of us have already known that); I just want to say that Jesus may tell us to do different things based on our love for Him.When Peter loved (phileo) Him, he was asked to feed His lambs. Jesus then asked him, Lovest (agape) thou me? But Peter said, Thou knowest that I love (phileo) thee. However, when Jesus asked Peter a third time, Lovest (phileo) thou me? Peter could not hold his grief. Peter realised that the Lord was testing him while recalling how he could have boasted and said, "I would always agape thee; not just phileo thee" or "I would never deny you". But Peter humbled himself (with tears in his eyes) and said "I phileo thee" a third time. Jesus, knowing that Peter had submitted, gave him the command to feed His sheep.

The lesson that I learn from Peter is not just about Peter's submission to the Lord. I learn that there are different levels of love for the Lord and different ways of loving the Lord too.
1. Different levels of love for the Lord are: phileo love, agape love, .. etc
2. Different ways of loving the Lord are: keeping His words, keeping His commandments, and feed His sheep

A preacher may keep a different commandment if he loves the Lord
Many of us think that, if we love the  Lord, all of us must study the Bible for x number of hours, keep x number of commandments, or do x number of good things .. However, I learn that this may not be the case. I learn that, if we love the Lord, we could be asked to do different things or different commandments. Hence, a preacher could show how much he loves the Lord by the way how he teaches, warns, feeds, trains, and shepherds the sheep too. On the other hand, a false prophet will show how much he hates the Lord by the way how he deceives, misleads, exploits, brainwashes, or hypnotises the Lord's sheep. A preacher who does not love the Lord will always teaches the sheep to do nothing, live foolishly, walk in the lawless assumptions of men, and keep no more commandments of God.

Do we know what does it mean to keep no more commandments of God? It is like keeping no more oil for the lamp of God like the foolish virgins:
Mat 25:1-8 KJV, Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  ..  (8)  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
Psa 119:98-109 KJV  Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. (99) I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation .. (101) I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.  (102)  I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me.  (103)  How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!  (104)  Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.  (105)  NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. ..  (109)  My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law.

A preacher who loves the Lord will not teach His sheep to do nothing
Many 'rest' preachers or radical grace preachers today say, "Of course, we love the Lord. But we do not teach the sheep to do good and keep any commandment. Instead, we teach them to do nothing, urr,  I mean we tell them to rest. Do you know why the sheep asked the Lord, When did we  see you thirsty and give you drink .. It means that the sheep will just do good without knowing it and we do not need to teach them, warn them, or encourage them to do good or keep any commandment."
Mat 25:37-40 KJV  Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?  (38)  When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?  (39)  Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?  (40)  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

I will ask them to read the Bible passage again, How do you know that the sheep (who did good) did not know that they did good? Of course, the sheep knew that they did good; but only that they did not know that they did it to the Lord. Similarly, the goats knew that they did nothing for others; but they did not know that they did nothing for the Lord.
This is a prophetic judgement against those who will come and deceive the sheep or the goats. Many sheep or goats (who are deceived) will not know that when they do good, they do it to the Lord. Many believers (including the sheep who do good) will still think that doing good is a self-effort (a good effort done for themselves and from themselves or just a 'do good get good' effort) not knowing that it is a fruit they do unto the Lord when they have the laws of God in their hearts. However, if the sheep are always deceived to listen and follow only the radical teaching of the false prophets, they may one day become the goats who will be asked to depart from the Lord's presence. 

They may keep arguing that they are justified by faith alone. However, in the last days when false prophets will rise and preach against the doctrine of Christ with their radical philosophies or lawless argument, many ignorant believers will be corrupted and become the goats (even though they may have the faith). They may think that they are forever justified without keeping any commandment of God, and they will go around using the vain lawless arguments of the false preachers to challenge the believers who will still obey and do good in the Lord. They cannot understand or accept what James had already warned them in his letters:
Jas 2:17-26 KJV  Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. ..  (19)  Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.  (20)  But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?  (21)  Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?  (22)  Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?.. (26)  For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

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