Jackson Snyder October 10, 1996
Snyder
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PREVIEW JESUS’
JEWISHNESS James Charlesworth - used to be Jesus Within Judaism,
a great book
Matthew 5 -
7
The contrite are fortunate: heaven
is theirs. Mourners are fortunate: they'll be comforted. The non-violent are
fortunate: the earth is their inheritance. Those hungry for justice are
fortunate: they will be satisfied. The merciful are fortunate: mercy will be
theirs. The pure are fortunate: they'll see God. Peacemakers are fortunate:
they'll be known as God's children.
Those who are persecuted for the
sake of justice are fortunate: heaven is theirs. You are fortunate to be
insulted and persecuted. You are fortunate when every kind of evil is spoken
about you falsely for my sake. Be happy about it. Your reward is very large;
just as large as that of history's great saints who were also harassed.
You are salt on the world. So if the
salt has lost its salinity, how can we say the world has been salted? If salt
isn't salty, then it's good for nothing and might as well be walked on like
worthless sand.
You are the world's light. A town up
on the hill is impossible to hide. Likewise, candles aren't lit just to be put
under a bucket. A candle is on the candelabra so the dark room can be
brightened. Let your light shine by doing good, so that your good deeds, like a
candle in a dark room, might be seen, and glory given to your heavenly Father.
I haven't come to repeal the laws of
the Old Testament, or to diminish the influence of their authors. Rather, I've come to fulfill them. The
universe could pass away, yet not the slightest bit of the Old Testament can
possibly be diminished until its fulfillment.
Whoever contradicts the commandments
of the Old Testament in the slightest way will be the least in Heaven's
Kingdom. But those who do what the Old Testament prescribes will be great. For
unless your devotion is greater than that of the pastors and church officers,
you'll never enter Heavens' Kingdom.
For instance, you've heard tell that
you shouldn't kill anyone or you may end up on death row. But I'm telling you
that for just being angry at someone you may get the death penalty, and if you
spit in derision at someone you'll be obligated to hell's fire.
So if you intend to give an offering
to God, before you do, go be reconciled first. Befriend your accusers quickly.
Or else your accusers may turn you over to the judge, and the judge may turn
you over to the bailiff, and you may end up in prison. And be assured you won't
be released from hell's fire until you serve out your full sentence.
You've heard tell that you dare not
commit adultery. But I'm telling you that if you even look at someone with
intentional lust you've already become an adulterer inside. So if your eye
makes you a sinner, yank it out; this is better than being thrown into hell.
And if your hand makes you a sinner, you're better to cut it off than end up in
hell.
You've also heard that if you want a
legal divorce you need to go to court. But I'm telling you that if you divorce
for any reason except immorality you make your partner an adulterer. And
whoever then marries an adulterer becomes one.
Also you've heard tell that you
shouldn't break your solemn word, but fulfill it as though you had promised the
Lord himself. But I'm telling you to give up swearing altogether and
completely. Just say 'yes' or 'no'. Anything more comes from the evil one.
You've heard tell 'an eye for an
eye, a tooth for a tooth'. But I'm telling you, it's no use getting even with
someone who's done you wrong. If someone slaps you, let them slap you again, if
they dare. If someone forces you by law to work for them, do more work than you
need to. In fact, give to every beggar and lend to everyone who asks you.
You've heard tell, 'love your
friends and hate your enemies'. But I'm telling you now, do loving acts for
even your enemies and pray for people that cause you pain so that you may
remain children of your Father in Heaven who causes the sun to rise on both the
good and the bad, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. Face it: I you
only love those who love you, where's your reward? Even the most contemptible
love and are loved. But you must be perfect, as your Father in Heaven is
perfect.
Avoid doing good to be seen; you'll
not get any reward for this from your Heavenly Father. So when you give an
offering to the needy, don't shout it from the housetops like the show-offs do
- those who want to be praised. The praise of the crowd is the only reward
they'll ever get. So when you give, don't even allow one hand know what the
other hand's doing. Give secretly, and your Father will reward you openly.
And don't be a
prayer-hypocrite. Show-offs love to get
attention in church and out. They've
already received their reward. But when
you pray, go secretly into your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father
there. And your Father, who sees you in
your secret place, will reward you in secret.
And in your prayer, don't do a lot
of talking. Some think that God is hard
of hearing, so they talk really loud and long.
Don't be a show-off! Your Father
knows your needs before you even ask.
Pray like this: Our heavenly Father,
your name is sacred. May your reign
come and your purpose prevail here on earth as it is in Heaven. Today, give us what we need for
tomorrow. Cancel what we owe others in
the measure that we cancel what others owe us.
Keep us from trials. Deliver us
from the evil one. Amen.
Remember that if you cancel the
debts of others, your heavenly Father will cancel your debts as well. But if you fail to forgive your debtors,
your heavenly Father won't forgive you either.
Now when you fast, make sure you
don't screw up your faces to get the attention of others like the show-offs
do. The attention they get is their
reward. When you go on a fast, wash
your face and comb your hair so that the others can't see that you're
fasting. But your heavenly Father, who
watches from a secret place, will reward you.
Don't invest your valuables in
worldly endeavors, where the moths depreciate your treasure; taxes rust it
away, and thieves steal it. Invest your
valuables in the endeavors of heaven, where there are no moths, corrosion, or
thieves. Either way you invest, your
minds and hearts will reside with your investments -- that's for sure.
The eye is the receptacle for
light. If your eye functions correctly,
your whole body will be full of light.
But if you're blind, your whole body is full of darkness. And if you're devoid of light, then your
darkness is very great indeed.
No one can work for two employers:
either she'll hate one and love the other, or she'll be faithful to one and
despise the other. Likewise, your
employer can't be God and money.
So don't worry about how you'll make
a living, what you'll eat or drink, your health, or what clothes you'll
wear. Isn't life more than food; your
body more than clothes? Look to the
birds. They don't work or invest, yet
your Father takes good care of them.
Aren't you worth more than many birds?
And does worry add years to your
life? No. So why do you worry about goods?
Think about how flowers grow.
They're not gainfully employed; yet even Solomon, in all his glory, was
never dressed as lavishly as a tiger lily.
If God clothes the grass, which is
alive today but may be dead and burned up tomorrow, then won't he do ever so
much better for you, as faithless as you are?
So don't be worried and say, 'How will we pay this or that' or 'what
will we eat or drink?' or 'what will we wear?'
Worldly people are worried about these things; moreover, your heavenly
Father already knows what you need. So
go after his Kingdom and learn his ways, and all the other things will be yours
in addition. And don't be worried about
tomorrow; tomorrow will worry for tomorrow.
Take one day at a time.
Don't be critical; you may be
criticized. For you will be judged with
the same measure of criticism. How can
you see the speck in your brother's eye, yet can't see the log in your
own? How dare you offer to exploit his
speck? You hypocrite! Take the log out
of your own eye first, so you can see to extract his speck.
On the other hand, don't cast your
pearls to the pigs. If you do, they may
be trampled as the pigs turn to attack you.
Ask and you'll receive. Seek and you'll find. Knock; the door will be opened. This goes
for everyone. If your son asks for a
sandwich, will you give him a stone? Or
if your daughter asks for help, will you give her a snake? Of course not. If you who are not so good still know how to give good gifts to
your children, how much more will your heavenly Father, who is good, give
you. So treat others as you want to be
treated and give others what you would like to receive: such action is the sum
total of the Bible's teaching.
Choose to go through the narrow
door. The wide and easy door leads to
destruction. Most people go the easy
way. But the road that leads to life is
narrow and hard. Few people find it.
Along the road, be wary of false
preachers who come to you as though they were really concerned about your
welfare. Outwardly, they are as
innocent as sheep. But inside, they are
as hungry as wolves. You'll know them
by their fruits. Do scuppernongs grow
on a thorn tree? Or do figs grow on
thistle bushes? No, of course not. Every healthy tree bears good fruit; but a
bad tree bears bad fruit. A bad tree
can never bear good fruit, nor a good tree evil. Every tree that doesn't bear good fruit will be chopped down and
pitched into the fire. So, like you
know fruit trees, you'll know your teachers and preachers by their fruits.
Just because you've acknowledged me
as 'the Lord' doesn't mean you'll enter the heavenly Kingdom. No.
Only the one who does the Father's will shall enter. On the day of entrance, many will say to me,
'Lord, Lord; didn't we preach for you, and cast out demons for you, and do
great things for you?' And then I'll
tell them plainly. 'No, you
didn't. I never knew you. Get away from me! You are ministers of the devil.'
These words are my instruction to
you who desire the Kingdom. Every one
of you who hears my words and does what I say will be like a builder who
constructs his home on a solid foundation.
The hurricanes came and beat on the house, but it didn't fall because of
its foundation. But whoever won't hear
me and follow my instruction is like the fool who built his house right on the
beach. The hurricane came and the waves
beat against it and it fell down - and devastating was its fall.