March 13, 2009

• Hebrews 12:22; why disciples followed Jesus; casting out demons

  I am going to miss the book of Hebrews for we are getting close to the end of the book, only one more chapter after this one, sigh. Yet I do have faith that, since we have fantastic Bible studies, that the next study will be just as awesome.  There is nothing boring about the Word of God.  Yet, it has been wonderful savoring the verses in Hebrews and seeking their meaning.

  Hebrews 12:22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,

  Pastor Don told us that we need to read scripture for what it says.  He talked about the fact that what is called Mt. Sinai in Israel is not the real Mt. Sinai – for it does not match the description in scripture.  Given there were twelve tribes of Israel camped at the base of Mt. Sinai, the one currently labeled that does not have enough land to camp over a million people in the valley.   Also, the mountain is not blackened as the scriptures would have indicated.  Pastor Don things that there is a mountain in Arabia that fits the description better, but the Arabs have put a fence around that mountain and won’t let the Jews near it, for fear of what archeological evidence could be unearthed.

  Pastor Don told us that in the last days God will reveal errors and clarify things.  It is the same way with other sites in Israel, there are great debates about which is the real Garden Tomb, the real site for the manger, etc.  The truth will set people free.

  In verse 22 (see above) this is talking about a spiritual Mount Zion.  You can see a natural event and call it a miracle, or you can see a miracle and call it a natural event.  What we need to do is see the truth in the event.

  God is not in the business of trying to make us happy all the time.  All the events in our lives have a supernatural facet to them.  God will use the events in our lives to guide us, and when we take a look in the Spirit, we can begin to identify the spiritual facet of our experience.  That helps us to understand why God permits certain things to happen. 

  Pastor Don used himself as an example – at one point he had an incurable lung disease and was told to put his house in order.  Yet, Pastor Don turned to God and was healed, and the end result of dealing with this disease and getting healed from it gave him a healing ministry. 

  Pastor Don then told us, “Worshipping at the wrong mountain will weaken our faith.”  When there are no archeological evidence or historical facts, it is a prescription for deception.  It cannot strengthen a person’s faith.  We have to know what we are receiving from, be careful what we eat (physically and spiritually).  Remember, a little poison each day over a period of time will kill us.

  When challenged, we can defend the truth.  Seeing the reality is powerful. 

  Many people are mistaught concerning the foundations of faith. Words can be used by people to distort the truth. Faith is not based on magic or the unknown.

  Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

  Faith is a SUBSTANCE -of things hoped for, and EVIDENCE of things not seen.

  Should we be hoping for something not recognizable with no basis in reality?  NO!  God will never ask you to follow Christ without giving evidence.  Based on the listed information, we have faith.  Even though we have not seen, we’ve heard something.  Is your spirit tangible?  No, not in the physical, but our spirit is real. 

  Hope is real.  We may not be able to touch it physically, we can be touched by the evidence of hopes met in healing, prosperity, etc.  Knowledge of this happening builds our faith, and that faith is built on the reality that I know that I know that I know. 

  Do we get there out of physical and experiential evidence – no.  God gives us testimony of what we put our faith in.

  Romans 1:18-19  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.

  We do not want to suppress the truth – Jesus is the Truth, the Life, and this Truth gives hope, faith and life.

  Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

  Invisible attributes are CLEARLY SEEN.  How?  Even though you cannot see God, you can see His creation, his power, and the Godhead, through creation.  There is no excuse to not believe God.  God is not asking us to believe without something that we can see – His creation.

  When Jesus showed up in Galilee, he had two disciples follow him – James and John.  They did not blindly follow an unknown man.  James and John were disciples of John the Baptizer.  When Jesus came and was baptized, John told the disciples that Jesus was the Lamb of God.  The disciples, decided to follow Jesus when Jesus told them to follow Him, and part of their decision was because of what they learned from John the Baptist. 

  God will not call anyone without facts.  John tells Andrew, and they go to the seashore of Galilee, and enter a fishing village. Jesus is at the village and something begins to happen.

  Matthew 4:12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee.

  Jesus began to fulfill the prophesies of Isaiah. He went around Galilee preaching and teaching and then came upon Simon Peter and Andrew. Matthew 4:18-20 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him

  They followed him, but Matthew does not show the whole backstory of why they chose to follow Jesus.

  Matthew 4:23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.

  There are four gospels, each taught from a different point of view, but they show that Jesus did what He taught. If you just read Matthew’s description you think that the disciples just blindly followd Him. Jesus did not just walk up to a disciple and say, “Follow me” and the disciple just followed Him blindly. Matthew did not record enough information. So we looked at the same passage in the other Gospels.

  Mark 1:14-15  Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom^{thats_italian}