Deuteronomy 13
Death to false teachersverses 1-5
IF there arise among you a PROPHET – or a DREAMER of dreams
and give you a sign or a wonder
And the sign or the wonder come to pass
whereof he spoke to you
saying
Let us go after other gods – which you have not known
and let us serve them
You shall not hearken to the words of that PROPHET
or that DREAMER of dreams
For the LORD your God proves you
to know whether you love the LORD your God
with all your heart and with all your soul
You shall walk after the LORD your God – and FEAR HIM
and KEEP HIS commandments – and OBEY HIS voice
and you shall SERVE HIM – and CLEAVE to HIM
And that PROPHET – or that DREAMER of dreams
shall be put to DEATH
BECAUSE he has spoken to turn you away from the
LORD your God – which brought you out of the land of Egypt
and REDEEMED you out of the house of bondage
to thrust you out of the way which the
LORD your God commanded you
to WALK in
So shall you put the evil away from the midst of you
Family members can be false prophetsverses 6-11
IF your brother – the son of your mother –
or your son – or your daughter or the wife of your bosom – or your friend
which is as your own soul entice thee secretly saying
Let us go and serve other gods – which you have not known
you – nor your fathers
Namely – of the gods of the people which are round about you
nigh to you – or far off you – from the one end of the earth
even to the other end of the earth
You shall not consent to him – nor hearken to him
neither shall your eye pity him – neither shall you spare
neither shall you conceal him
BUT you shall surely KILL him
Your hand shall be first upon him to put him to death
and afterward the hand of all the people
and you shall stone him with stones – that he DIE
BECAUSE he has sought to thrust you away from the LORD your God
which brought you out of the land of Egypt – from the house of bondage
ALL Israel shall HEAR – and FEAR
and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you
Destroy city of false prophetsverses 12-17
IF you shall hear say in one of your cities
which the LORD your God hath given you to dwell there
saying
Certain men – the children of Belial
are gone out from among you
and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city
saying
Let us go and server other gods
which you have not known
THEN shall you inquire – and make search – and ask diligently – and – behold
IF it be truth – and the thing certain
that such abomination is wrought among you
You shall surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword
destroying it utterly – and all that is therein
and the cattle thereof with the edge of the sword
You shall gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof
and shall burn with fire the city – and all the spoil thereof every whit
FOR the LORD your God – and it shall be a heap for ever
it shall not be built again
And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to your hand
that the LORD may turn from the fierceness of HIS anger
and show you mercy – and have compassion on you
and multiply you – as HE has sworn unto your fathers
Only listen to the voice of the LORDverse 18
WHEN you shall hearken to the voice of the LORD your God
to keep all HIS commandments which I command you this day
to do that which is RIGHT in the eyes of the LORD your God
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 3 You shall not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams” for the LORD your God proves you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (5254 “proves” [nacah] means assay, try, test, make a trial, venture, or learn the true nature of something)
DEVOTION: God puts tests in front of HIS people on a regular basis. HE did it throughout the journey of the children of Israel to see if they were obedient to HIS commands. HE put circumstances in front of them to see what they would do in a given situation.
Remember God never tempt people to do evil. HE does give people opportunity to make choices to do well in their daily life. HE wants to see if those who claim to be willing to follow HIS standard will really do it in a given opportunity.
Our normal nature is to do evil. We are prone to wander from the LORD rather than stay on the straight and narrow road that HE wants us to follow.
So here we see an opportunity for those who claim to be followers of the LORD to pass the test as true followers of HIM. What will they do with someone who asks them to worship another god? Will they be willing to share their worship of God with another false god? Are they going to have a divided loyalty?
Moses warns them that the LORD will put these kinds of tests in their life to show how much they really love the LORD. This will also show how their internal feelings are regarding trusting in the LORD alone.
These tests are given to us today to see if we will stay true to the Word of God. There are many false teachers trying to get our attention today. We have those who teach the “health and wealth gospel” who state that God wants all HIS followers to have a lot of money and good health if they are true to HIM.
This is a false teaching. God has promised to bless us but we are to remain true to HIM at all times. Blessings don’t always mean money. Blessings don’t always mean health. These are lies that false teachers want us to believe.
Blessings are given to those who are obedient and faithful to the message of Jesus Christ. These blessings include a place reserved for us in heaven when we die. These blessings include the LORD’S provision of our NEEDS not our WANTS. God is not a spiritual Santa Claus that will give us all the presents we want and think we deserve.
CHALLENGE: Know that the LORD is trying you just like HE tried the children of Israel to see if they were going to remain faithful to HIM alone.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional believers
: 6 If your brother , the son of your mother , or your son, or your daughter, or the wife of your bosom, or your friend, which is as you own soul, entice you secretly, saying Let us go and serve other gods, which you have not known, you, nor your fathers (5496 “entice’ [cuwth] means to allure, to mislead, to provoke someone to do something through deception or persuasion, instigate, lead astray, seduce, or stir up)
DEVOTION: Family can be good for your faith or bad for your faith. There can be family members who say that they love the LORD and yet want to follow the false god of money or sports or bad habits.
They can encourage you to go along with them in their habits that are not part of the standard that God has set down in the Bible. They can entice you to start a bad habit or say things that are not proper for those who are followers of Jesus Christ. They can encourage you not to go to church on a given Sunday to do something that the LORD would not approve of according to HIS standard.
How do we know if it is going after a false god? If it includes not doing something the LORD wants you to do, it is a false teaching. If it includes saying things that are lies, then it s a false teaching. If it includes going places the LORD would not want you to be involved in, it is a false teaching.
Just because it is something your family has done for years and yet it is against a teaching of the Word of God it is a sin. Our standard has to be the Word of God and our family or friends have to come second.
The Bible is plain to those who genuinely want to know its teachings. The Holy Spirit helps those who are genuine believers know what are truth and what is error.
CHALLENGE: Watch who you listen to and check them out regarding anything they say or want you to do.
: 8 You shall not consent to him, nor hearken to him; neither shall your eye pity him, neither shall you spare, neither shall you conceal him (14 “consent” [‘abah] means willing, yield to, to desire, to breath after, to long for, to be in want of, to be willing in mind, to obey, or be voluntarily accepting)
DEVOTION: In the days of the children of Israel entering the land of Canaan, there were many false prophets in the land. There were people who were supposed to be following the LORD looking to other sources of worship.
These individuals were trying to cause the people of God to serve their false gods. They were doing it for a profit for themselves.
Today we have many people who want to say they are followers of the LORD but they are not serving HIM with their whole heart. They want to lead others astray to serve a god that is not in the Bible.
They use the Bible but they are teaching false doctrines that cause people to go after what they are teaching rather than what is taught in the Word of God. They use the Bible for their own type of belief system that the LORD doesn’t approve of.
When you watch people on television it all looks good but if you check out their teachings from the Word of God you will see that they are just using the Word of God for their own benefit. The teachings are false.
The Holy Spirit will speak to those who are genuine believers seeking HIS guidance and reveal to them that the teachings of these men and women are false. They have a little truth with a lot of error.
We need to be discerning of what is being taught. The health and wealth “gospel” is not the real gospel. The get rich quick gospel is not the real gospel. The ones who teach that all should be healed if they have enough faith are not true teachers of the Bible.
The Holy Spirit will give those who are genuine believers discernment regarding those who are staying true to the Word of God and those who are not. Ask and it shall be given you who are the genuine teachers of the Word of God.
CHALLENGE: Always ask the LORD to give you discernment when you are watching or listening to a speaker. HE will give you the ability to know which individuals are truly followers of the LORD.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 13 Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known. (1100 “Belial” [beliya‘al] means without profit, worthlessness, destruction, wickedness, evil or naughty)
DEVOTION: This word is used throughout the Word of God to describe people who are worthless. There were people in Israel who were doing what was right in their own eyes.
Remember that what is right in our own eyes is usually not right in the eyes of the LORD. In this case, the false prophets were trying to encourage the children of Israel to serve other gods. They wanted them to serve the false gods of the land. They used the methods God used to try to cause them to turn away from the LORD. They would use signs and wonders. They would say that the LORD spoke to them in a dream. God did work that way.
However, in this case they were spreading a message that was against the LORD. The LORD commanded them to kill those who were false prophets and tried to turn people away from HIM. Jesus was a true prophet. Jesus presented the Word of God accurately. We need to learn from Jesus.
Today we have individuals who are entering the church and saying that what was taught in the past is not the truth. They come into our churches and teach things that have never been accepted in the past by the church. These false teachers are given the opportunity to write books. Many Christians are reading their books and thinking that what they have been taught in church is wrong.
The only way for individuals to know the truth is to be in a Biblical church with a Biblical pastor teaching the Bible. Then they need to go home and check out what is taught by the standard of the Bible. The group that has the hardest time doing this is men. They are the leaders of the church and they have a hard time studying the Word of God to find answers.
Our future depends on good Biblical men teaching good Biblical truth to all those who will listen to them. There are always going to be false prophets or teachers traveling around the country teaching a little bit of truth with a lot of error. God is warning us that this is going to happen and we need to test each teacher/ preacher by the Word of God alone.
CHALLENGE: Do you know how to test the teachings of those you are listening to/reading by the Word of God? Ask someone you trust if an preacher or author is speaking the truth in love.
: 18 When you shall hearken to the voice of the LORD your God, to keep all HIS commandments which I command you this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the LORD your God. (8085 “hearken” [shama] means listen to, obey, pay close attention to, to understand things heard, examine, to hear with interest, or give heed)
DEVOTION: This whole chapter deals with the fact that there are individuals who want to cause those who are genuine believers to not live according to the convictions found in the Word of God.
God has set the standard for all aspects of our lives. HE wants us to know that HE is concerned with the way we life each day of our life. HE wants us to be loyal to HIM alone. HE doesn’t want to share our loyalty.
We are not to be more loyal to our family than to HIM. We are not to listen to those who want us to do things that are displeasing to HIM. HE doesn’t want us to accept the teachings of those who promise things that HE has not promised.
HE wants us to keep our eyes on HIM alone. We are to do what is right in HIS sight and not to worry about what people think about what we are doing.
Some of the children of Israel listened to the voice of the LORD and were given blessings. HIS commandments were plain. They are not easy to obey but with the help of HIS Holy Spirit we can fight a good battle against these temptations.
We might lose some battles but the war has been won because of the blood of Jesus Christ. We have to keep this in the back of our minds at all times because there are times with our enemy, the devil, will bring up our past failures to keep us thinking that we can never please the LORD.
We have to remember that once we confess our sins, HE will remove them as far as the east is from the west. HE will bury them in the deepest part of the ocean. HE will forgive and show us mercy. Satan doesn’t want us to believe this truth.
Look to the LORD for strength each day for each battle HE allows into our life. HE is always there to help us win the battle.
What battle are you fighting today? We have many individuals who are struggling to find a good church to attend, so that, they can grow in the LORD. If this is one of your struggles you have to get up each Sunday and try to find the right church. The LORD will help you find the right fellowship you need to grow in your Christian life. Don’t let Satan keep you in bed on Sunday morning!!!
CHALLENGE: We are not to be concerned with what is right in our own eyes but what is RIGHT in the eyes of the LORD at all times.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Commandmentsverses 4, 18
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD (Jehovah)verses 3-5, 10, 12, 16-18
God (Elohim)verses 3-5, 10, 12, 16, 18
LORD your God verses 3, 4
LORD thy Godverses 5, 10, 12, 16, 18
Fierceness of HIS angerverse 17
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
False prophetverses 1, 5
Put to death
Spoken to turn you away from the LORD
Dreamer of dreamsverses 1, 5
Put to death
Spoken to turn you away from the LORD
Signsverse 1
Wonderverse 1
False gods of peoples around Israelverses 2, 7
Land of Egypt = house of bondageverses 5, 10
Children of Belialverse 13
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
False prophetverses 1, 3, 5
Worship other godsverses 2, 6, 7, 13
Not hearken to words of false prophetverse 3
Turn away from the LORDverse 5
Thrust out of the wayverses 5, 10, 13
Evilverse 5
Enticeverse 6
Not pity, spare, or conceal false worshipersverses 8-10
Wickednessverse 11
Children of Belialverse 13
Abominationverse 14
Cleaving to cursed thingverse 17
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
LORD proves HIS peopleverse 3
Love the LORD your Godverse 3
with all your heart
with all your soul
Walk after the LORDverses 4, 5
Fear the LORDverses 4, 11
Keep HIS commandmentsverses 4, 18
Obey HIS voiceverses 4, 18
Serve the LORDverse 4
Cleave to the LORDverse 4
Redeemed from house of bondageverse 5
Walk in the way of the LORDverse 5
Not consent to go after other godsverse 8
Not hearken to go after other godsverse 8
Eye not pity false teachersverse 8
Not spare false teachersverse 8
Hearverse 11
Enquire concerning truthverse 14
Search for truthverse 14
Ask diligentlyverse 14
Truthverse 14
Mercyverse 17
Compassionverse 17
Multiply obedient peopleverse 17
Promiseverse 17
Do what is rightverse 18
Hearken to the voice of LORD your Godverse 18
Keep HIS commandmentsverse 18
Do what is right in eyes of LORD your Godverse 18
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Israelverses 11, 14-16
Hear
Fear
No more wickedness
Search
Ask diligently
Look for truth
Thing is certain
Smite false believers
Burn spoils
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
Death to false prophetverses 5, 9, 10
Death to inhabitants of cityverse 15
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QUOTES regarding passage
6–11 Not only rebellious prophets, but one’s closest relatives (one’s very own brother, a son or daughter, or dear wife) or closest friend who said, “Let us go and worship other gods” (v.6), was to be put to death (vv.9–10). This was to be done when such enticement was made secretly as well as openly.
When speaking of the gods of the people who would be around them in Canaan (v.7), Moses referred to them three times in this chapter either as “gods you have not known” (vv.2, 13) or as “gods that neither you nor your fathers have known” (v.6). It is not that the Israelites had never heard of these gods but rather that neither they nor their fathers had ever acknowledged them as gods. They had never known them as their gods in day-to-day experience. Craigie (p. 223) says, “The Israelites knew God from their experience of his presence with them and word to them, but they had no such knowledge of any other supposed gods.”
A panoply of words cautions the people not to be seduced by intimates to the worship of other gods. They were not to yield to, listen to, show pity to, spare, or shield an enticer (v.8). Not only was the defector to be stoned to death (v.10), but the first stone was to be thrown by the near relative or friend that the defector had attempted to drive from the Lord (v.9). The NIV’s “turn” (v.10; cf. v.5) seems not strong enough. The word is used for driving a nation from its lands, either driving the Canaanites out before Israel or driving Israel out of the land into exile (30:1, “disperses”; Jer 8:3, “banish”; 23:2–3, “driven”). This extreme punishment is expected to produce good results. Though many modern sociologists declare that punishment—especially capital punishment—is no deterrent to crime, the message Moses proclaimed as the Word of God says that it would be a deterrent. The observation of v.11 is repeated in 17:13; 19:20; and 21:21. (On the theological and social implications of the death penalty, see Kline, Biblical Authority, pp. 154–67. See also the comments and Notes on 17:7, and comments and Notes on 17:12.) (Kalland, E. S. (1992). Deuteronomy. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel (Vol. 3, p. 98). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House)
13:8–10a. The person who was being tempted should respond first by not yielding to the temptation (do not yield). The command not to listen to him may have meant not to give in to his plea that his ways be kept secret. Since the temptation came through a loved one the tempted person would naturally feel compassion or pity and would probably be inclined to cover up the sin of his loved one (shield him). But here again God’s commands were to rule over human feelings and experiences. The tempted person was to expose his loved one and in fact to be the first in stoning him to death (cf. Zech. 13:3). By casting the first stone the accuser was testifying to the truth of his testimony. The participation of the rest of the community then showed their allegiance to the Lord and their resolute hostility toward anything that might endanger that allegiance and turn them away from the Lord.
13:10b–11. The result of such a severe action would be that all Israel would hear about this extraordinary devotion to the Lord and be afraid to disobey Him (cf. Acts 5:11). This is precisely what Moses was demanding of the people—an extraordinary commitment (superseding all other intimate relationships) to the God who had shown extraordinary grace to the nation (who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery; cf. Ex. 13:3, 14; 20:2; Deut. 5:6; 6:12; 7:8; 8:14; 13:5). This passage may have been in Jesus’ mind when He demanded a similar commitment of His followers (cf. Matt. 10:34–39; Luke 14:26). (Deere, J. S. (1985). Deuteronomy. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, pp. 286–287). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
If people don’t know the true and living God and don’t have His Word to guide them, they have to find substitutes to help them make decisions and face up to the demands of life. Instead of worshiping the true and living God, the people in Canaan worshiped dead idols (Ps. 115), and for the Word of God they substituted superstitious practices that linked them to Satan and his demonic forces. No matter what the experts in “comparative religions” might say, pagan idolatrous religion is Satan worship (1 Cor. 10:14–22; Rev. 9:20). The explosion of the occult that we’ve seen in recent years is evidence that people are seeking in the wrong direction for the spiritual help they need. Visit any large secular bookstore and you’ll find shelves of books devoted to Satan, demons, black magic, and allied themes. People who refuse to love the truth must end up believing lies (2 Thes. 2:7–12), and only Jesus Christ can deliver them from the bondage that these occult practices bring to their lives.
The abominations of Satan (vv. 9–13). God forbids His people to have anything to do with occult practices. Moses had already mentioned some of these “abominations” (vv. 9, 12; “detestable practices,” niv) and warned Israel not to meddle with them (Ex. 22:18; Lev. 17:7; 19:26, 31; 20:6, 27), so this wasn’t an entirely new theme; but here he went into greater detail. The false prophet Balaam discovered that no sorcery could work against Israel (Num. 23:23), but the Jews could ensnare themselves if they investigated these dangerous practices and got themselves involved. One reason God commanded Israel to wipe out the nations in Canaan was because of their evil occult practices (18:14), and why should the conqueror follow the religion that brought judgment to the conquered?
Lest we conclude that these warnings about the occult don’t apply to Christians in this “enlightened age,” we need to be reminded that idolatry and witchcraft are listed among the sins of the flesh in Galatians 5:19–21, and that the Book of Revelation teaches that occult practices will be very widespread in the end times (9:20–21; 18:2). In fact, those who engage in such things are among the ones destined for the lake of fire (21:8; 22:14–15). (Wiersbe, W. W. (1999). Be equipped (pp. 91–92). Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub.)
13:10 stone him to death. The convicting witness cast the first stone. Love for family and friends must not take precedence over devotion to God (cf. Lk 14:26). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Dt 13:10). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
If a close relative or friend secretly entices (lit. incites, allures, instigates, seduces) a believer to idolatrous practices, that person is liable to the death penalty (13:6–11). Stoning was a common means of executing the offender. The accuser cast the first stone, thereby showing there was sufficient evidence and that the charge was serious. Verse 11 suggests there is a deterrent effect for the rest of Israel when this is taken seriously. (Gilchrist, P. R. (1995). Deuteronomy. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, p. 119). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.)
Ver. 10. And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die, &c.] It was not sufficient to answer the end of the law to cast a few stones at him, but he was to be atoned to death: because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the Lord thy God; to compel by force of argument, or the dint of persuasion, to relinquish the profession of the true God, faith in him, and the worship of him: which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; which aggravated the sin of the enticer, and would have made the sin of the enticed the more heinous had he fallen into it. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 2, p. 56). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
Three cases are mentioned. The false prophet or a dreamer of dreams, who confirms his claims by a sign or a miracle, yet whose aim is to seduce to idolatry, is to be put to death. False teaching, which leads from God, is an abomination. It results finally in the most awful moral corruption. A false prophet may do signs and wonders to prove thereby that what he teaches is truth. Signs and miracles are therefore no evidence of the truth. Spiritualism and Christian Science claim to be the truth and they often refer to the evidences of supernatural manifestation and miraculous healings which take place in their cults. Satan can work signs and miracles. He does so in these delusive systems of the last days and God permits it to prove thereby His people. In the light of Matthew 24:23–25, 2 Thessal. 2:8–12 and Rev. 13:13–14 the first five verses of the chapter we study are of great interest. The false prophet to come, the personal and final Antichrist will do lying wonders and the many who received not the love of the truth will be permitted to believe the lie. One does well to be on the guard whenever teachers claim some special power or signs. The second warning is against a more subtle snare, when the deception worketh secretly, emanating from a blood relation. If it is the dearest one, no pity is to be shown to him. The third case is that, when a whole city has departed from the Lord and serves other gods and practices the abominations of idolatry. It was to be completely destroyed and the city burned with fire. Such will be some day the awful fate of apostate Christendom, having rejected God’s Son and the Gospel. (Gaebelein, A. C. (2009). The Annotated Bible: Genesis to Deuteronomy. (Vol. 1, pp. 406–407). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
The CHURCH in an AGE of CRISIS by James Emery White
In an article titled “More Americans Tailorhing Religion to Fit Their Personsal Needs,” USA Today examined the lasts research that indicated that one day 310 million people may have 310 million religions. Today, people are ‘making up God as they go.” “So if World War II – era warbler Kate Smith sang today, her anthem would be Gods Bless America. (p. 168)
As mentioned in an earlier chapter, according to the American Religious Identification Survey released in 2009 the percentage of American adults who say they have no religion has doubled in twenty years to 15 percent, constituting the third largest religious group in the nation (eclipsed only by Catholics and Baptists. (170)
Hebrews 2
Because Christ was man as well as God, He is able to give aid to us who are human.
INSIGHT
Jesus is God, but He was also man; Jesus was man, but He is also God. It is essential that Christ be both God and man. If Christ were not man, He could not have died for our sins. If He were not God, His death would not have been sufficient to pay the price for the sin of mankind. Christ was the perfect sacrifice. In fact, He was the only possible sacrifice able to atone for the sins of man and appease the wrath of God. As you continue to read the book of Hebrews, you will realize that the author’s main point is simply this – the superiority of Jesus Christ. (Quiet Walk)
Do you know what a group of turkeys is called? It’s called a rafter. Why am I writing about turkeys? Because I’ve just returned from a weekend at a mountain cabin. Each day, I marveled at the train of turkeys parading past our porch.
I’d never turkey-watched before. They scratched fiercely with spectacular talons. Then they hunted and pecked at the ground. Eating, I assume. (Since this was my first turkey-observation time, I wasn’t 100 percent positive.) The scrawny scrubs in the area didn’t look like they could sustain anything. Yet here were these turkeys, a dozen of them, all of which looked delectably plump.
Watching those well-fed turkeys brought to mind Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:26: “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Jesus uses God’s provision for seemingly worthless birds to remind us of His care for us. If a bird’s life matters, how much more does ours? Jesus then contrasts fretting about our daily needs (vv. 27-31) with a life in which we “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (v. 33), one in which we’re confident of His rich provision for our needs. Because if God can care for that rafter of wild turkeys, He can certainly look after you and me.
(By Adam R. Holz, Our Daily Bread)
THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD
And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
1 John 4:14
The whole biblical meaning of this particular term should be put like this: Christ is the Savior as the result of something that He has done. We must get rid once and forever of the idea that we are the actors or doers and merely receive encouragement from Him. Not at all! The biblical representation is that God sent Him into the world to do something, and that we are saved as the result of something He has done quite apart from ourselves and our own action. He has acted, and it is His action that produces salvation and the way of escape for us.
Now here is something that is utterly fundamental and primary, and unless we are agreed with this statement there is really no point or purpose in proceeding any further. Salvation, according to the New Testament—take, for instance, Colossians 1 where you have a perfect illustration of salvation—is something that is entirely worked out by the Lord Jesus Christ. It is something that has come to men and women as a free gift to them, and they have nothing to do but to receive this gift. It is something provided; it is the righteousness of God that is given.
That is something that is surely basic, and of course there is no phrase, perhaps, that puts all this more perfectly than that great and glorious phrase that was uttered by our Lord Himself upon the cross when He cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30). With His last breath, as it were, He cried out, “I have done it! I have completed the work that You gave Me to do.” It is He who saves, and our salvation comes from Him and is derived from something He has done once and forever on our behalf.
A Thought to Ponder: Salvation, according to the New Testament, is something that is entirely worked out by the Lord Jesus Christ.
(From The Love of God, pp. 135-136, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son….These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” (1 John 5:11, 13)
Our salvation does not find its basis in an emotional experience of the heart, although our emotional tendencies are God-given and not to be denied. Indeed, the salvation experience may be sweet and memorable, but all sorts of religions, non-religions, and cults have emotional experiences, like the Mormon’s “burning of the bosom.” But experiences alone are subjective and easily misinterpreted. Our faith should be a faith from the heart, and it should be founded on the written Word of God. The third verse of our hymn, “My Faith Has Found a Resting Place,” presents this timeless truth.
My heart is leaning on the Word, the written Word of God,
Salvation by my Savior’s name, Salvation thru’ His blood.
I need no other argument, I need no other plea,
It is enough that Jesus died, And that He died for me.
The Bible, God’s holy Word, is a book about Jesus and how God, through Jesus, deals with man. Much more could have been written: “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31). “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). We were redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:19).
And this is sufficient! Nothing else needs to be done or said or paid! Christ’s blood is enough! His Word tells us so. (JDM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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