Jesus Never Said, Be Correct: Reflections on Virtues, Vices and the Commandments
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Low to High Price: High to Low Avg. Clovis, King of the Franks Oct 01, Sire of Kings Dec 31, Available for download now. Jesus Never Said, "Be Correct": Reflections on Virtues, Vices and the Commandments Dec 31, A Simple Adjustment Dec 31, Reclaiming the Middle Ground Dec 31, Provide feedback about this page. There's a problem loading this menu right now. One application of have a heathy sense of shame is to be modest in dress and behavior.
Jesus indicates that being a source of temptation is worse than being tempted. There's a spriritual nakedness which like its physical counterpart should be associated with shame. Jesus warned, "Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.
A characteristic of the sinful nature is that Familiarity breeds contempt. Thus a challenge in the Christian life is respect those who are close to you. King David celebrated in praise before the Lord dancing. But his wife said, "How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, disrobing in the sight of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would! This often can occur in a church family environment. Also on the job, respect your boss. And "those who have believing masters are not to show less respect for them because they are brothers.
Instead, they are to serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers, and dear to them. It goes without saying that Christians should respect God. And much more so. A primary way to show respect for God is by listening to what he says. Studying the Bible is a way to show respect for God. And much more so to apply it. Like for example by practicing generosity.
As I mentioned previously, respect is particularly challenging with regards to familiars. And due to the feminist culture pervasive these days, this is particularly challenging of wives. Else typically, as Isaiah says, "Their children are rebellious and women rule over them. Also "Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king. But did you do wholeheartedly or reluctantly, or for some ulterior motive? Often the fear of people can interfer with wholehearted obedience. For "many even among the leaders believed in him.
But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue. Just attending church on Sunday is not enough. There's a zeal that drives the Christian to do more. Elisha told him, "Strike the ground. The man of God was angry with him and said, "You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it.
But now you will defeat it only three times. In much of Jesus' ministry he contrasted the concept of wholehearted obedience - an actualized faith - versus that of the legalism of the Scribes and Pharisees who hadn't taken the Law to heart and so misapplied it. Wholeheartedness in the faith results in an inspired understanding of the application scripture in line with the spirit of the Law. The halfhearted are the armchair theologians - mere do-nothing speculators. Much of the book of proverbs is devoted to characterizing the fool.
Here are just a few verses. And he can't take an insult. What do you do for fun? One is to say that you cannot put faith in what God has promised. That is to disbelieve that God is faithful and good. Related is to disbelieve that sin has a consequence. And thus unbelief and disobedience go hand in hand. Notice a few verses later give an example. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Paul writes, "we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. Most significantly is the unbelief leads to condemnation.
Unbelief is also associated with a corrupt conscience. Not to be confused with a "guilty conscience", which is actually a sign of a healthy conscience "To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure.
Paperback. $ Sire of Kings. Paperback. $ Jesus Never Said, Be Correct: Reflections on Virtues, Vices, and the Commandments. Paperback. $ ordinances reflect the work of God in creation and depict 'the constitution of things' as they were intended Jesus is described in the gospel of John as the literal Word of God. The Seven Vices and Seven Virtues are moral opposites, just as light In the first column, list the commands that are negative (ie God said not.
In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. God's promises are primarily about the future.
Thus Christian faith is associated with Christian hope - the feeling of anticipation of what God has promised to come to pass - the hope of the resurrection. God has made salvation contingent upon faith. But where does faith come from? How can one develop faith? So "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: Careless is synonomous with "thoughtless".
People need to be thoughtful about what they say and do. Carelessness is particularly revealed in speech. For this reason also ignorance is no excuse if thoughtfulness would have affected the outcome. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. As careless words can have unintended consequences, those who use them will be held accountable.
So consider the implications of what you want to say before you say it. I will walk in my house with blameless heart.
Thus in contrast to be carelessly thoughtless, a cautious person is thoughtful. The proud don't have room for God. Such people avoid Bible study seeing as God defines himself in the Bible. What does God think of pride? After the Lord disciplined him he proclaimed, " Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And t hose who walk in pride he is able to humble. Pride makes a man careless.
Humility is arguably the most important virtue of all. It is prerequisite to all others. And indeed a person's salvation itself is contingent upon it. For God has constructed the gospel in such a way so as to prevent the proud from embracing it.
God exalts the humble. He says, "This is the one I esteem: God gives more grace to the humble. That is why Scripture says: God guides the humble. God encourages the humble. Therefore "do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
A person's cruelty is seem by how he treats subordinates, and particularly how he treats the ultimate subordinate - animals. Proud people tend to have little sympathy for animals, yet they consider themselves "kind" by their own standards. The cruel don't consider themselves cruel because their conscience has been defiled, seared as with a hot iron consequently numbing them to the pain of others.
Or transferring their guilt to others so as to take out their due punishment on others. Such men will be punished most severely. In fact it says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: Cruetly is characteristic of God's enemies. The Psalmist says, "Consider my enemies, for they are many; And they hate me with cruel hatred. He is just, but not cruel.
Virtues and Vices
Notice again as I said in the previous section, a person's cruelty or sympathy is revealed by their attitude towards animals, and particularly towards domestic animals. For they are dependent up us. David was a shepherd, as was Moses. And Jesus likens himself to a shepherd, and even to the "lamb" of God. One aspect of being a good shepherd is to have sympathy towards those who are helpless and harassed. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way. One who gives little thought to another's circumstances cannot be sympathetic.
A person's sympathy is revealed by taking practical steps to help others who are burdened. If you are in a position to do so, beware of imposing regulations unsympathetically. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not think evil of each other. You give a tenth of your spices— mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law— justice, mercy and faithfulness.
One more step
You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. Sympathy is also developed through experience. Even of Jesus it is written that, " we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are— yet was without sin. Christians are to sympathize with fellow Christians who are persecuted for their faith, regardless of the consequences.
Kids play violent video games and the protagonist of many movies today are characteristically violent. And it's not simply a Western cultural trait. Muslims around the world affirm violence and terrorism. In northern India Hindus are attempting to genocide the Christian community. All over the world it seems violence, even the level of atrocity is something characteristic of the world's culture.
Don't make the violent your mentor or hero. Don't chose ANY of their ways. For "a violent man entices his neighbor and leads him down a path that is not good. If a person wants to become right with God they must renounce their violent ways. Prior to his conversion Paul was a violent man. He said, "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.
So "be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Mothers are characteristically gentle towards their young, as Paul also characterizes himself towards the Thessalonians. That is, to be lenient. And in the extreme is contrasted with violence in listing qualifications of overseers.
Women beautify themselves with such a quality as Peter writes, "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.
So they complain and seek relief from their discomfort the easy way. Those who work hard complain less. Complainers tend to be lazy pleasure-seekers. So let us beware first of all of grumbling against God as the people of Israel in the desert "n or let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! Gentleness or meekness is the opposite to self-assertiveness and self-interest. The gentle person is not occupied with self at all. But it's also a matter of degree, depending on the severity of our circumstances, at least in comparison to what we're used to, or in comparison with our expectations. Job started off well when things started to go bad for him.
As with circumstances so with people. Some people will really challenge your meekness But "bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. Uncle Tom was a Christian enslaved.
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He was brutally mistreated but always was gracious to his master, forgiving him, in accordance with 1Peter 2: For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
Even today "Uncle Tom" is considered a derogatory term in the black community. Such is the spirit of the world today. While today people emphasize personal rights and freedoms, they lack a spirit of meekness and graciousness. Inherent in this quality of meekness is longsuffering.
Beware of those feigning friendship who seek personal information from you which they will then distort in order to slander you. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: Do the Father and the Son sanctify us equally with the Holy Ghost? By the aid of our own powers alone can we do anything available to life eternal? Coupled with the new methods, whereby children are not required to memorize, two generations of children have grown up not knowing the Catholic Faith. Paul commands Timothy, "I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality. If it is in your power to do go, Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.
Thus it says, "with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love" Eph 4: Paul writes, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners— of whom I am the worst. But for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.
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Circumstances can reveal a person's character, but they can also shape one's character for good or bad depending on how one reacts to circumstances. Thus for example we read in Daniel chapter 4 of God humiliating Nebuchadnezzar due to his pride. After 7 years of humiliation he repented and learned humility. On the other hand of that generation of Israel that came out of Egypt it says, "He humbled you, causing you to hunger Nonetheless God killed that generation but for 2 men.
For that generation hadn't learned to embrace meekness. Conversely if things go well in one's life, that can mold a person to be proud. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Thus even Paul appreciated being humiliated at time. Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. Sex was designed uniquely for marriage, which is covenantal union between one man and one woman for the life of their spouse in accordance with God's design.
And that's the main thing that makes sexual immorality contemptible. Namely that its a rejection of God's design. Why did God destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? And likewise he brought destruction on Israel for its sexual immorality, " Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them Israelites did in the wilderness , and in one day twenty-three thousand fell" 1Cor He speaks of a "Jezebel" there teaching Christians to commit sexual immorality.
So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds. Don't associate with sexually immoral Christians, regardless of whether they or others label you as "judgemental". Paul commands, "I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler.
What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. Some of the most emphatic statements in the Bible concern sexual immorality. And there are only a few places where it explicitly and emphatically states what God's will is. This in one of those statements. Holiness is related to one's sexual purity. A few verses later he states in reference to sexual immorality, "God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Hints like living together with a "friend" of the opposite sex? Even a glance could be such a hint.
Jesus said, "anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Avoid circumstances that lead to sexual temptation. For those who lack self-control and have the option to marry Paul advises, "if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion" 1Cor 7: But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Forgiveness is a practice of grace. If a person embraces the grace of God, then they will naturally forgive others in the same manner in which they have been forgiven. But those who don't forgive others in the manner in which God forgives have yet to embrace the grace of God and thus are disqualified from receiving it.
In Matthew 18 Jesus spoke of a man who was forgiven much, but then failed to forgive his brother of just a little. The Master took back his forgiveness of that man and threw him into jail to be tormented. Jesus concluded, "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart. The faith that saves is the faith that forgives. Or more generally, it's the faith that imitates God.
To believe in Jesus is to follow him taking on his attitude and attributes. Forgiveness is generally contingent upon repentance as Jesus said , "If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. Paul had him handed over to Satan for discipline and disfellowshipped.
But we learn in 2Corinthians the man repented. Paul writes, "Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. There are those who don't care enough to deal with sin, and there are those who deal with sin, but not in love, having no interest in reconciliation. The Christian way is to deal with sin. To rebuke those who sin, but to seek to reconcile sinners to God and to the fellowship of believers.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Do you boast of your goodness and of your achievements? Do you make sure others know of your accomplishments and good deeds? Do you seek the limelight? Do you covet a celebrity status? Such was the attitude of the religious elite of Jesus' day, and likewise since then. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. To do things in order to be seen by men is sin. Therefore to the extent to which you are able, keep out of the limelight. And don't use religious titles like "Father" or "pastor".
It only invokes pride. And see to it that your religion is not merely symbolism over substance - dress and ceremony over the actually doing of good and practicing righteousness. Christianity is meant to be practice in humility. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. How would you behave differently if you knew that the only rewards you would get from God are from works of which you had not been compensated for in this life? Wouldn't it be a good idea - an act of faith - to actively avoid compensation in this life?
To avoid the praise of men? Rather hating is not caring. Lying is never appreciated by those who are victims of it. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. It is only out of an enlightened self-interest that people don't tear one another apart. In fact this is one way to distinguish a false Christian from a genuine one. Genuine Christians call sin for what it is. Any good person does these things, simply on the basis of decency. Nothing is ever really transformed, moved beyond, redeemed, transcended, forgiven.
But that has a nasty underside: Indeed the litmus-test for Christian orthodoxy is not the creed Can you believe this set of truths? Can you love an enemy? Can you not give back in kind? Can you move beyond your natural reactions and transform the energy that enters you from others, so as to not give back bitterness for bitterness, harsh words for harsh words, curse for curse, hatred for hatred, murder for murder?