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The
Need To Go Against The Majority
We live
in a fallen, sinful world that is in a state of
rebellion against the great Three-In-One God of
Heaven. Humanity has joined forces with very real
and deadly entities - the god of this world -
HaSatan - the Adversary, and his fallen angels.
Even though
we are allied with them in a great rebellion against
the good King of the universe, these dark, evil,
malevolent forces control us and oppress us. They
try to keep us far from God, distant from the
truth that will set us free, and cut off from
restoration to spiritual health. They have spiritually
crippled us. They can even, on occasion, make
some of us physically sick.
To overcome
these very real and deadly and destructive forces
of Satan, sin and death, our great and loving
Heavenly Father sent His dearly loved and unique
Son into this world. Mighty Immanuel really came
among us! The eternal Son of God came to Earth!
Yeshua really is the Messiah! That is the most
fantastic news!
The world
is far from God and salvation and eternal life.
Tragically, throughout our long history, the majority
of the Chosen People have been far from Him too.
One might think that things would be different
because Immanuel actually came among us, and the
coming of the Messiah would bring the world back
to God. But, even though the Savior and Healer
of the world visited this planet, the majority
of the world has continued to reject the God of
Israel. And sadly, even though the Messiah has
really arrived, the majority of the Chosen People
have continued to reject Yeshua too.
We need
to have enough faith in God, enough confidence
in Messiah, enough trust in the Holy Scriptures,
enough love for one another to go against the
majority of the Jewish people and the majority
of the Messiah-rejecting world.
The Holy
Spirit, teaching us through His servant Luke,
gives us yet another incident of God the Father
using Messiah His Son to bring healing to one
of the Chosen People - and the controversy it
caused, followed by teachings to encourage us
to be part of the faithful remnant minority.
And
Yeshua was teaching in one of the synagogues on
the Sabbath. Many nations have had leaders
who were ignoramuses. Yeshua is Israel’s King,
as well as our Supreme Rabbi. His teaching is
true and authoritative and beneficial.
The Messiah
often taught in the synagogues of God’s Special
Nation. What a blessing to us that was! What profound
teaching! What clarity He brought! And, we are
privileged to have some of those same teachings
faithfully recorded for us in the New Covenant
Scriptures! To have such a great leader like Yeshua,
who is the Supreme Scholar, is a fantastic blessing!
Yeshua
did more than teaching in that particular synagogue.
God used Him to bring miraculous healing to a
woman who very much needed it.
And
there was a woman who for eighteen years had had
a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent
double, and could not straighten up at all.
Not all
sickness is caused by demonic activity, but this
particular sickness of this particular woman was.
Humanity is like this woman - plagued by fallen
angels, sick for a long time, unable to stand
up straight, unable to function the way we were
designed to function by the good Creator, and
desperately in need of healing.
Thank
God that the Messiah, who has love and compassion
for crippled humanity, and through whom God can
heal all of our diseases, was right there in that
synagogue!
When
Yeshua saw her, He called her over and said to
her, "Woman, you are freed from your sickness".
And He laid His hands on her; and immediately
she was made erect again and began glorifying
God.
The Spirit
of God wants us to understand that the Same One
whom God used to heal this woman, will one day
heal all of humanity who know Messiah and trust
Him. If He only lays His hands on us - and makes
contact with us, and we make contact with Him
by coming to know who Yeshua really is, and committing
ourselves to Him, eventually He will heal us body,
soul and spirit!
He will
heal all who were made in the image of God but
have been damaged by the Fall, so we can stand
up straight and fully serve the eternal God. Praise
the Lord!
But, not
everyone understood this message that God was
trying to communicate though this sign-miracle.
In fact, it was someone who should have understood
the most clearly that this miracle pointed us
to the truth that Messiah Yeshua is the Great
Healer of Humanity - who rejected Rabbi Yeshua
the most!
But
the synagogue official, indignant because Yeshua
had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the
crowd in response, "There are six days in
which work should be done; so come during them
and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day".
According
to many of the theologians of that day, healing
was a kind of work, and since work was forbidden
on the Sabbath, healing was forbidden to be done
on the Sabbath. But, that understanding of healing
on the Sabbath was wrong, and Yeshua knew it.
Bad theology
is destructive. It does not bring honor to God
nor bring help to people. False teaching is ruinous,
and must not go unchallenged. Rabbi Yeshua had
the wisdom and the courage to correct that harmful
error.
When faced
with serious theological error, Yeshua did not
remain silent. Even though it would bring Him
into more conflict with the majority of the religious
leaders, Israel’s Messiah was willing to endure
conflict in order to stand for the truth.
But
the Lord answered him and said, "You hypocrites,
does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his
ox or his donkey from the stall and lead him away
to water him? And this woman, a daughter of Abraham
as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long
years, should she not have been released from
this bond on the Sabbath day?"
Here is
the Rabbi’s argument: If, on the Sabbath, human
beings are willing to do some work to meet the
needs of their animals, and prevent them from
suffering; and since human beings are more valuable
than animals, Messiah is willing to be used by
God to meet the needs of human beings for healing.
The human need for healing is more important to
God than a legalistic observance of the Sabbath.
Yeshua’s
argument was simple, wise and true. Everyone could
understand it. And, God approved of it as well,
since the Father enabled this woman to be healed
when Yeshua made physical contact with her.
This incident
demonstrated that the young Rabbi from Nazareth
was close to God, wise and very courageous. It
took courage to publically correct the majority
of the religious leaders of Israel, right in their
own synagogues, and let everyone know that they
were hypocrites; that they were inconsistent;
that even though they claimed to really know God
and understand the Torah best of all, they did
not really know God they way they needed to, and
they did not really understand Torah the way they
should.
The religious
leaders no doubt resented Yeshua for disagreeing
with them, and correcting them, but the ordinary
people loved what He was saying and doing!
As
He said this, all His opponents were being humiliated;
and the entire crowd was rejoicing over all the
glorious things being done by Him.
Before
we leave this world, we need to understand that
Yeshua is Messiah, Lord, Savior and King. We need
to trust this Ultimate Healer Of Body And Soul
and Spirit. We need to have the faith to identify
with Him, and go against the God-rejecting, Messiah-dishonoring
world. We need to have the holy courage to go
against the majority of the nation of Israel.
Do you? We need to be willing to be part of the
faithful remnant, which is often a persecuted
minority. Yeshua was willing and able to do that.
Are you?
Throughout
history, the Lord has not worked through the majority,
but rather through the small, faithful, courageous
minority - the remnant. He consistently has used
the few to overcome the many, the weak to overcome
the strong. Many are called, but few are chosen.
Knowing this should encourage us, and help us
be patient, and full of hope, and be more able
to endure life in this fallen world.
So
He was saying, "What is the kingdom of God
like, and to what shall I compare it? Yeshua
asks: How does God operate? What are some of the
principles the Creator uses in this fallen world
to extend His domain over more human beings?
Messiah
answers His own question, and His answer comes
from nature. The way that God has designed certain
things in the physical realm are similar to the
way He operates in the spiritual realm: The way
that God extends His dominion over men and women
who are part of a world in rebellion against Him
is like a mustard seed, which a man took and
threw into his own garden; and it grew and became
a tree, and the birds of the air nested in its
branches."
A mustard
seed is very small. Yet, from this seemingly insignificant
beginning, a tree that is thousands of times bigger
than the original seed will develop. That tree
is big enough to house creatures that are also
thousands of times bigger than the original little
seed! That little, seemingly insignificant mustard
seed is amazing! It has so much potential for
growth and for doing great things!
And, that
is how the King of the universe is operating in
this fallen, rebellious, satanically controlled
world. He is bringing more and more men and women,
Jews and Gentiles, out from under the control
of Satan, sin and death, and making them part
of His everlasting kingdom. But, that process
starts off small and seemingly insignificant.
Are you
willing to be part of what God is doing, even
if it means being part of something small and
insignificant to the world? Do you have the faith
and patience to wait until God is finished, and
what is seemingly inconsequential fills the universe
with importance?
To further
strengthen us to have the kind of thinking, the
kind of faith that will endure the rejection of
the majority, Yeshua gave another comparison.
And again He said, "To what shall I compare
the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a
woman took and hid in a larger amount of flour
- about half a bushel of flour - until it was
all leavened".
The way
that the Creator increases His influence over
human beings in this satanically-controlled world
is comparable to a little lump of leavened dough.
The leaven is small, unseen, seemingly irrelevant,
yet able to expand and grow and become a much
larger amount of flour. Messiah’s people - Messianic
Jews and born again Christians, will, from a small
and humble beginning, grow and influence others,
until a whole new world is filled with us! But,
until that happens, we must patiently endure being
like that small, little lump of leaven. Are you?
The Holy
Spirit, communicating through Luke, based on the
wisdom of the Messiah, again teaches us that we
need to be willing to be part of the faithful
remnant minority.
And
He was passing through from one city and village
to another, teaching, and proceeding on His way
to Jerusalem. And someone said to Him, "Lord,
are there just a few who are being saved?"
This is a very good question. This is an important
question, that many of us have also asked. And
the answer is yes. It is just a few who are being
saved, and so we need to go against the majority
and identify with the few.
And
He said to them, "Strive to enter through
the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek
to enter and will not be able.
In contrast
to many today who teach that the door to Heaven
is wide, because there are many ways to God, and
many will successfully go through the wider door
and experience eternal life - Mankind’s Supreme
Religious Authority declares that the door to
Heaven is actually quite narrow.
In contrast
to the wide door that the majority will try to
enter, and fail to get through, the minority who
will be saved are to have another kind of thinking
altogether. They are to strive, to make special
efforts to go through another door, the narrow
door, and not go along with the erroneous thinking
of the majority.
Why the
narrow door? Because we must come to God on His
terms, not on our terms, and His terms are salvation
by grace through faith in Messiah Yeshua, based
on genuine repentance. And, we must demonstrate
that the repentance and faith are genuine by right
living as given in the Holy Writings!
Don’t
attempt to gain salvation any other way, and don’t
wait too long. Time is limited. Don’t wait until
it is too late! And, for some, they will wait
until it is too late!
Once
the head of the house gets up and shuts the door,
and you begin to stand outside and knock on the
door, saying, 'Lord, open up to us!' then He will
answer and say to you, 'I do not know where you
are from.'
There
is a limited time to be reconciled to God; there
is a limited amount of time given to you to turn
to God, and recognize that Yeshua is the Messiah
and accept the One God sent to be the only Savior
of mankind.
Then
you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your
presence, and You taught in our streets'.
Casual familiarity with God and Messiah is not
enough. A full commitment, a complete turning
to God, to Messiah, to the will of God, to the
ways of God are required of each one of us.
And
He will say, 'I tell you, I do not know where
you are from; depart from me, all you evildoers.'
The majority
of human beings, including those who consider
themselves to be very religious, are going to
be shocked at who is welcomed into Heaven and
who is rejected. Make sure you are not one of
those who are unpleasantly surprised!
In
that place there will be weeping and gnashing
of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob
and all the prophets in the kingdom of God
(the small mustard-seed-like faithful remnant
of Israel, often persecuted by the faithless majority
in their generation), but yourselves being
thrown out.
The religious
leaders in Yeshua’s day were not striving to enter
through the narrow door - which included recognition
of Yeshua as the Messiah. They were not being
faithful to God and His revelation like the Fathers
and the Prophets were in their generation. A day
was coming, Yeshua warned, when they would deeply
regret it.
And, they
would be further embarrassed. Messiah prophesies
that a new group of people - non-Jews, the uncircumcized
who were generally looked down upon, would be
willing to humble themselves and welcome the Jewish
Messiah, and these Gentile Christians would be
welcomed into God’s Kingdom, while the Yeshua-rejecting
Jewish people would be excluded.
And
they will come from east and west and from north
and south, and will recline at the table in the
kingdom of God. And behold, some are last who
will be first and some are first who will be last".
Gentiles
who recognize that Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah
will be saved, and enjoy the pleasures of the
New Jerusalem, but not the most religious of the
Jewish people who reject Messiah.
And, I
tell you that many who today, claim to be religious
and spiritual people - Muslims; Hindus; New Agers;
and many who call themselves Christians, but who
are Christians in name only, who have contempt
for God and Messiah and the Scriptures that is
caused by a casual but uncommited familiarity;
and Jewish people who persist in their rejection
of Yeshua; and some who call themselves Messianic
Jews - will also be rejected. Make absolutely
sure that you are not one of them! Nothing is
more important!
What Messiah
taught, He lived. He was willing to go against
the majority. He was willing to go against the
religious leaders who were teaching serious error.
Trusting in God, and God’s plan for His life,
even if it meant His death, He was willing to
stand up against corrupt political leaders.
Just
at that time some Pharisees approached, saying
to Him, "Go away, leave here, for Herod wants
to kill You”.
Not all
of the Pharisees opposed Yeshua. A remnant were
sympathetic to Him and warned Him to protect Himself
from a plot by Herod to kill Yeshua.
But, Yeshua
knew God’s plan for His life, and Herod’s rejection
would not deter Him from His responsibilities.
And
He said to them, "Go and tell that fox, 'Behold,
I cast out demons and perform cures today and
tomorrow, and the third day I reach My goal.'
Nevertheless I must journey on today and tomorrow
and the next day; for it cannot be that a prophet
would perish outside of Jerusalem.
Humanity’s
Great Healer would continue healing people physically
and spiritually. But, His time was now very limited.
He would only do that for a short period of time.
Then He would travel to Jerusalem, where He would
experience ultimate rejection by Israel’s religious
and political leaders. Ironically, the Prince
of Peace, and Israel’s Greatest Prophet, knew
that He would die in the center of the world,
and be killed in the City of Peace, where so many
of Israel’s prophets had died before Him.
Yeshua
was a man who was willing to endure the rejection
of the representatives of the nation. Yeshua was
willing to be rejected by the majority in this
life, and suffer in this life, knowing that He
would be welcomed accepted by God in God’s eternal
kingdom. How about you?
You can
go with the majority now, and perhaps not suffer
as much now, but suffer much greater loss later;
or you can go against the majority now, and perhaps
suffer more now, but be welcomed into the kingdom
of God. Which do you choose?
There
are terrible consequences for rejecting God’s
Son, who is the only Savior and Redeemer and Healer
of humanity - and Yeshua knew it. He understood
what would befall the capital city of the Chosen
People whose majority rejected Him. And yet, still
loving His erring nation and foreknowing the devastation
that would befall the Messiah-rejecting majority,
Yeshua lamented:
O Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and
stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to
gather your children together, just as a hen gathers
her brood under her wings, and you would not have
it! Behold, your house is left to you desolate.
And, just
as Messiah predicted, 40 years later, Jerusalem
was destroyed, the nation was devastated, and
many exiled among the nations for almost 2,000
years. Even though there has been a partial restoration
to the Land, without recognizing that Yeshua is
King Messiah, we are still in a state of spiritual
desolation.
But, the
God of Israel is merciful, and compassionate,
and will end our long desolation by bringing us
to the place where we will welcome Messiah Yeshua!
And
I say to you, you will not see Me until the time
comes when you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in
the name of the Lord’”!
Connected
to Messiah’s Second Coming, the majority of Israel
will recognize that Yeshua is indeed the Messiah,
and we will welcome Him and bless Him and be blessed
by Him!
Until
that happens, be like Yeshua, and go with Yeshua,
outside the camp, where He is. Be part of the
faithful, sometimes suffering minority. Tell others
- Jews and Gentiles, about Him, and the narrow
door. Teach others the truth. Where they are in
error, correct them. Don’t be intimidated by religious
and political leaders. Endure!
If you
do, you will be part of few who are being saved;
you will be part of the amazing growth of the
mustard-seed-like kingdom of God, and the good
leaven that will grow and grow; you will be among
the prophets and the faithful fathers, and the
apostles, and the Lord Himself! And, you will
be welcomed into the everlasting kingdom! And,
everything you have endured will have been more
than worth it!
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