Words of Jesus Part 34
Importunity means: The man was persistent and for that reason his friend would help him in his need but help wasn't coming because the man was a friend of his. He got an answer because he persisted in nagging his friend for help. He wouldn't give up. Jesus was telling us that if a person on this earth would answer a need by persistent asking, how much more would our heavenly Father who loves us more than any earthly person, give the Holy Spirit to them that ask. Another opinion is that the man helped his friend because he saw the great need of the friend. God sees our need and will give when we ask.
We see here the savior giving us a good lesson on prayer. Our focus should never be on asking for selfish reasons or to gain materially. Notice that the person who went to his friend was asking for bread for a visitor and was in need of help. He could expect help not because the guy was a friend of his but because he was a person in need God does not promise to give us everything but He does promise to give to us things we need and the emphasis here is on the Holy Spirit. We are to always seek to be filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was given when Jesus went back to heaven to await the time when He will return to us again. In the mean time God did not leave us alone. We can have the presence of the Holy Spirit abiding within us forever. We must ask, and be expectant in prayer to be filled with the Holy Spirit and never give up and think that He is not for us today. Sometimes prayer is not answered when it is a selfish prayer. Example:
We must get out of our heads the thought that we can just covet a new house, car, and other wealth and expect to get it by saying the name of Jesus. The scriptures that tell us to ask, seek and knock primarily deal with spiritual things necessary for the salvation of not only ourselves but others. God will always provide for the necessary material benefits we need to live in today's world if we trust Him continually but material things should not be our main concern. He says to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and then we can trust Him to supply the other necessary things as we need them. We are not to seek riches of this world and glory in abundance. It will become a snare to us. Remember what happened to Solomon who was the world's wisest man. God rewarded him with riches because he did not desire or ask for them but later those riches plus his many wives caused him to depart from God and serve idols. Please, let us not fall for the deceptive health and wealth gospel. Let us just simply trust in God to take care of us but seek the spiritual things instead. The true blessings of God is spiritual. Material blessings come to the saved and the unsaved also. There are many rich men who are not spiritual and live far apart from God or God's word. We cannot assume that just because one is rich that he or she is great in the sight of God. God gives rain to the just and the unjust. We need to seek to be rich in the things of God. True riches are the things given to us by God being salvation from sin, being born again by His spirit, being filled with the Holy Spirit. Those things bring true joy and peace. Those things are things thieves cannot steal, fire cannot burn up and they will see us through to eternity. Verses here are skipped because the same subject is discussed in the notes on Matthew.
Recently there has been a renewed interest even among non-Catholics in Mary worship. We must be reminded here of the words of Jesus concerning his earthly mother. As great as she was and a woman that should be called blessed to have been chosen to bring the Christ child into the world to save us from sin, she was never to be worshipped for she herself was a handmaiden and a vessel to bring Christ into the world.
Jesus reminds us that those that keep the word of God is blessed just as much as His own mother. Mary was not to be considered greater than any believer but was to be considered blessed or happy to be able to have been used of God in the way she was. We should be considered blessed to be used of God to spread the gospel to the entire world. We are never to pray to Mary and exalt her or any other person above other believers. All are saints who believe in Jesus, not just a chosen few made saints by any church.
Those that do the will of the Father in heaven is equal to the natural family of Jesus. Mary had other children besides Jesus. These were children naturally born of Joseph and Mary after the birth of Jesus. She was not a virgin as some teach after the birth of Jesus but only before His birth. I am not degrading Mary in any way. There is nothing wrong with marriage and having children. She is to be commended for that, not made into an immaculate virgin that we worship. She would not want us to do that. There is no Mary worship taught in the word of God. She is to be respected and loved as we would respect and love all fellow believers but not worshipped. To God be all the glory. No matter how good a person may be, we are not to exalt them above another believer. We have nothing that we did not receive. There is no mediator besides Jesus Christ.
Mary the mother of Jesus would not want us to worship her. She is not an intercessor between us and Christ. Jesus is the only intercessor and Mary would tell us that if she could. Mary was saved by grace the same as all others. She was blessed to be chosen to bear the Christ child and blessed to have been saved just like us who believe.
Outward religion does not save the soul or make clean from sin. It has been a temptation for ages to get away from what really is necessary for salvation and start doing outward religious acts to save the soul. Washing before we eat is good for health reasons but that is all. It has nothing to do with salvation and eternal life.
Jesus may have seen something in these people that if they started giving alms it would show true repentance and love toward others and that would make them clean spiritually. He called them wicked. Our outward actions usually show what is in our hearts if we don't do them for show or praise of men.
While we should give, it should never be emphasized over judgment, love and mercy. Too much outward religious show will sometimes cover up the truth and keep the message of salvation from being understood. Outward religious acts may dangerously be substituted for repentance and inner change needed to save the soul from sin.
Again the danger of just having an outward show of religion does not mean that a person is holy. Some desired to be seen as religious but had evil in the heart. Not only was this common among the Pharisees but down through church history popes, priests, and others who claimed to be holy men of God were evil. Read of the tortures, adultery, thefts and murder commanded in the name of Christ by popes, bishops and so-called church leaders. It is appalling. We can't just accuse the Jews who persecuted Jesus and early believers. Look at the church when it came to power in Rome. The apostate church of Rome put to death more people than the Jews or Muslims did. They were worse in that they did these things in the name of Jesus Christ. They killed thinking they did God a service just like other religions did.
The disciples in the early church were persecuted by the Jews yes, but years later after Constantine gave the church power, the apostate church turned around and became more corrupt and put more people to death than Jews and Muslims.
These probably were not what we think of as lawyers although some of them are corrupt also, but scribes of the law of God.
The fathers of the Jewish people, Pharisees and scribes killed prophets that told them the truth. Even today those that are faithful to preach the truth of God's word is rejected and sometimes persecuted. Its okay to preach a watered down message that makes everyone happy but if we preach repentance and turning from sin, we are called legalistic and Pharisees by the modern church. Pharisees were for outward religion, they were not for repenting of sin and living holy before God. Their so-called holiness was outward religious rituals and acts. There was not love, compassion or change in the heart. It is not legalistic to preach living a holy life by the standards set forth in the New Testament. The prophets warned the people when they departed from the law not because they kept the law. The law was good and instructed people how to live in righteousness. To call someone legalistic for preaching righteousness is more being a Pharisee than someone to lives holy and teaches holiness. It is true that if we stress outward religious acts instead of inner change, that we could become a legalistic Pharisee but warning against sin is not being legalistic. That is what the prophets were put to death for.
Another example that purely outward rituals and show covers up the true meaning of God's word. People tend to trust in what they see instead of repenting and seeking God for salvation from sin. The kingdom of God is within us, not outward show.
Speaking the truth does not win us any popularity contest. They were desiring a king who would give earthy victory over the Romans, not a savior from sin. We have to preach repentance from sin when we preach salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, or else we have people coming to Christ who live any way they desire with no change. Christ came to save us from sin and that is badly neglected in today's gospel message. Repent means to turn around and change. Repent means to change one's mind. The gospel is to repent and turn to Christ forsaking our old ways and becoming a new born creature in Christ.
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