IN THE WORDS OF JESUS–Part 292

Love is the Fulfilling of the Law

ON GOD; Part LXXVII

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment . He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also” (1 John 4:1-21).

We spent our time yesterday on the keyword propitiation and its devolution into the various scenarios of atonement that are preached by the church and which we saw in the several commentaries that were included in our essay. As we said, the majority of these scenarios or theories, which we did not yesterday name specifically, are from the Church Fathers in the early centuries and from the those who brought the Reformation to the world. We could go on and on into the various theories but we will not; for those interested in this, Wikipedia is a good starting place. For us it is enough to understand that there are many theories, some related and some not, that tell us that the Master’s death was for our sins and that through His death they are all washed away, borne by Him who had no sin of His own. We posited the idea that much of this belief in the atoning power of Jesus crucifixion was and is based upon the ancient human understanding, or lack thereof, of appeasing God by the sacrifice of something of value and that this rather worldwide practice was codified by Moses into a religious ritual that was aimed at repentance but which became over time merely a ritual that removed the personal burden of sin from the man and placed it upon his sacrifice. We posted yesterday a chart of the types of sacrifice that were included in the Jewish religion and noted how they came to an abrupt end with the sacking of the Second Temple in 70 AD and this because a primary part of the codification was that these sacrifices were to be done only in the ‘house’ of the Lord. First the rather portable one constructed according to the elaborate plans given to Moses and then the permanent one built by Solomon which was destroyed by the Babylonians then rebuilt during the captivity by the authority of the more favorable rulers of the Persian Empire. the Temple was then renovated by Herod the Great who reigned in Judea at the time of the Birth of the Christ. It is interesting to note the role of sacrifice and the belief in appeasement as it is reflected in this act of King Solomon at the dedication of the Temple that he had built; there are two parts, first when the Ark is brought into the Temple and the second at the ‘official’ dedication. The point to see here is not the dedication itself by the role of the sacrifice and the reliance of the Jews in this as a Path to God:

• “And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up. And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude” (1Kings 8:4-5).
• “And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the LORD. And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD. The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brasen altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings” (1Kings 8:62-64).

Can we even faintly imagine this scene; the number of animals slain is staggering and the volume of blood and fat to be burned is unimaginable. From this scene of religious ecstasy and man’s ongoing delight in the act of sacrifices for the appeasement of the Lord and as atonement for sins we come again to those sayings that we posted at the end yesterday which were intended to show that these sacrifices, indeed all sacrifices, were not what the people thought; they did not appease the Lord and did nothing for a man’s sins. Before we continue we should take a step back and remember that men believe what they will depending upon what they KNOW and this is an ever changing scene. As we move through time, we move through the evolution of man who has gone from the instinctual to the emotional and then to the mental ways of viewing Life and in this we should see that what is pertinent to the instinctual man and likely the early emotional man is reflected in his barbarism and in his ideas of God and sacrifice. As time moves on the more emotional man sees the way to God differently and builds great cathedrals and ordains elaborate ceremonies and doctrines and the mysticism of the early middle ages. Today man is on the higher side of emotion and many there are who can be seen as mental and this development must bring newer and better and Truer ways of approach to God. Man does not however forget the past and if we look at religion throughout the world today we will find that much of  its basis is in the tenets of those who lived many thousands of years ago and their successors which are still playing an essential role although the Truly spiritual man of today is likely outgrown them all.

Two thousand years ago the Christ came near the end of the Arian Age and brought the beginnings of the New Teaching of the Time that would lead us into the Piscean Age. This is much like in yet earlier times when in Abraham’s day the world was brought from the Taurean Age, of which we know so little, into the Arian Age. Today we are moving from the Piscean to the Aquarian and the seeds of that change are planted and growing. None of this is static and it all works out under the Great Plan of God which waits for no man and these ‘teachers’ and ‘avatars’ that come among us come to help the masses move from era to era and to break down the confining walls the old civilizations. We should not forget also than in between these times there are others that come in the name of the Lord and who play their part in the evolution of the race and among these are most all of the world’s ‘religious’ figures including Moses and the Buddha, Lao Tzu and Muhammad plus likely many others over the last 3500 or so years. We should remember here that when we speak of these Souls who have come to serve the Lord by serving the race of men that there have been none like unto the Christ; none who could bring to us in His person the fullness of the potency that IS the Love of God and of whom the Apostle Paul tells us “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9); none who could say in Truth that “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30).

Continuing on we should see that the idea of sacrifice is from ancient times and has been outgrown by most but its remnants still live on in theology and in the minds of some parts of Judaism who believe that these sacrifices are to resume again with the building of Third Temple. As a religion the Jews are frozen in time; they are still waiting for the Messiah but this plight does not only befall them as most every world religion staunchly holds onto those ideas, philosophies and doctrine upon which they were built whether they be Truth or illusion in today’s world. Yesterday we saw two sayings from the New Testament that should tell us of the Master’s view of the whole context of sacrifice and we should believe here that if this is the view of the Christ that it is the view of God as well; there can be no separation as the Master tells us clearly that:

• “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me” (John 5:30).
• ‘Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10).
• “He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me” (John 14:24).

Can we see the deep mystery here? And can we see the same Truth for every one of us who can come to that point of being accounted worthy of His Kingdom and progressing then to that ultimate point of KNOWING. These are the things that should concern each of us as Christians and not a debate over His saving grace or His atoning death as these bring us no closer to His Presence nor His Kingdom without the repentance that He teaches and our following Him and keeping His words. Our words from yesterday on sacrifice are intended to tell the Jews of the worthlessness of their efforts and that the Truth is in mercy and in Love; He says:

• “And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question” (Mark 12:32-34).
• “For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6) and as the Master says this same to the Jews:

• “But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Matthew 9:13).
• “But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless” (Matthew 12:7).

Add to this the fact that there is not any other reference to sacrifice in all of the Master’s words; He offers none nor do His disciples and He teaches naught about it. He teaches only Love and repentance as the ways to the Lord. Seeing this and all that we have been saying regarding sacrifice but especially His words or lack of words about it, how is it that we have made this vicarious atonement the foundation of the religion that carries His name , this same kind atoning sacrifice that He speaks against. There are no easy answers to this but in the words of His apostles we can offer a better understanding when we look away from all that had led the Jew in these times and the Christian teaching of original sin or the fall of man which we will not deal with here except to say that there is no real foundation for any of this archaic belief either except the same ancient doctrines of the church. From the beginning of the Master’s time on the Earth the message was never changed and we have spoken of this before; the teaching is straightforward, it begins with the Baptist and then is carried forward by the Master and then it is to be taught by the apostles and disciples and finally becomes the crux of His charge to his disciples when he departs.

• The message is repentance and the Kingdom of God and this is the first and whole message of the Baptist; other things he did and said but all were to this end. “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying , Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:1-2).
• The Master similarly, He preaches the Kingdom and repentance and He tells us that we must believe this is the good news; He never varies from this theme but teaches further that repentance makes one accounted worthy and the Kingdom IS the Love of God, the Christ Within; it is a state of being and not a place. “Now after that John was put in prison , Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15).
• “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand…….And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people” (Matthew 4:17, 23). In this we find the words of the Master that allow us to equivocate the ideas and the words; the gospel of the Kingdom, the good news, is that the Kingdom of God is at hand, it is here for all to take through repentance.
• The Master repeats the word of the Prophet Isaiah and in these words are the same ideas; these ideas are the Kingdom of God and this the Master preaches through repentance. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:18-21).
• “And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders” (Luke 20:1). If this is what the Master preaches:  “the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” then we should see this in every place where we see that He preached or taught.
• When He sends the apostles out to preach He tells them that they must carry the same message: “And they went out , and preached that men should repent” (Mark 6:12).
• “And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick………….And they departed , and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where” (Luke 9:2, 6). Above repentance, here the Kingdom of God; between them the whole message.
• Jesus sends the seventy the same way “And heal the sick that are therein , and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you” (Luke 10:9)
• And in the end He gives them the same charge and through them He gives it to us; not to preach doctrine but to preach the Truth and the reality of the Kingdom of God and Love. “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come……..Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen” (Matthew 24:14;  28:19-20).

In this list of verses above we should see the intent of the Master insofar as His teaching and His purpose which simply stated is to preach repentance and the Kingdom of God, that it is at hand, it is near, it is come upon us. These two ideas interfold into the the preaching of the Gospel as this is it, this is the Good News; the Kingdom is at hand and our entry into it is through repentance, True repentance. If this were not so, the Master would not have told us it. So when we as a church forge forward into the unimportant concepts of atonement and the whys and the hows of Faith and we ignore the weightier measures of repentance and mercy and Love, are we any different than the Pharisees to whom the Master says “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done , and not to leave the other undone. (Matthew 23:23) and Vincent tells us that we should understand Faith in this saying as faithfulness⁴.

We will complete out thoughts on this and our topic of propitiation in the next post; they do all work together in the teaching of the Kingdom.

Note on the Quote of the Day

• ⁴ Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888