Faith and love are greater forces for righteousness than rules and regulations could ever be.
The above statement makes perfect sense and reflects the gist of what Christ tried to teach the Jews in his day and those who would be his followers. In the study of my Master’s teachings, the above is one thing that I have learned that has been indelibly etched in my mind, heart and soul and it has given me a much greater appreciation for him, his God and my God, and the love that they both have for the entire human family. While so many within the human family – proclaiming some religious following – hate and dislike each other, this is not how God and His Christ feels about the human family.
So Loved The World
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Notice at John 3:16 we are told that God so loved the world that he was willing to send His only begotten Son. That is his first directly created Son. It should be noted that God did not send His most beloved Son just to those who today call themselves Christians, but to the entire world of mankind.
The selfishness of the religious system called by men, Christianity, love to usurp The Son of God to themselves and think that he is for only those who would accept him as their Lord and Savior. This narrow view provides them an easy way out for not having to explain the questions, “What about the billions of persons who existed long before there was a Christ? How can they believe in someone they never heard of?” Or, “What about the billions who lived during the same time period as Christ but who lived in remote regions of the earth such as in China, Mongolia, Australia, etc. How can they believe in someone they never heard of?”
Rarely do they look at the examples of Christ’s display of love, kindness, forgiveness towards persons who were NOT his followers. He did not condemn an adulterous woman that the Scribes and Pharisees had condemned to death by stoning (John 8:1-11); rarely do they consider the promise Jesus made a condemned man who was not his follower, paradise (Luke 23:43); missing from their hearts and minds is thoughtful reflection on one of the greatest displays of love towards enemies by Jesus: He asked forgiveness for the persons who persecuted him, beat him, placed him on trial before the Roman authority and who would put him to death. (Luke 23:34) Not to mention that Jesus resurrected many persons who were not his followers.
Something is very wrong when a religious system that claims to be of God and Christ teach and do the opposite of what Christ did. This religious system – in fact, all religion – acts as if hates mankind rather than loving it. Only the motivation of hate would be so quick to teach threat of eternal condemnation in a fiery hell or loss of eternal life if one does not join THEM or accept Christ as one’s Lord and Savior. Jesus NEVER did any of this. Yet, when one speaks to most claiming to be his followers, they put on an outward appearance of love and care for others, but that external facade quickly fades away if one does not accept THEIR conditions of what THEY THINK salvation is or what THEY believe.
Love was never the motivating force in their lives, rules and regulations are. Winning converts to their religious organization so others can join them in decrying that all other religions – even the ones claiming to be like them – are false and joining them in condemning anyone and everyone who does not accept their requirements for salvation. I people actually think by JOINING a religious organization and making vows to those organizations will save them. They do not realize that their vows are to an organization and what they have established as requirements and not to God and Christ.
The world of Christianity today behaves Pharisaical. Love is not the force that drives its rules and regulations does. For example, a person within any one of the 41,000 so-called Christian denominations, might be expelled if they fail to satisfy some requirement of that religious organization. They might not be accepted if they do not follow their rules of water baptism or undergoing some indoctrination before being accepted. A colleague I know here in Africa (where I live at present) wants to be a Seventh Day Adventist. His problem is that he has two wives; both who have children by him. The Church tells him that he cannot get baptized as a Seventh Day until he drops one wife and clings to the other. Well, these two wives with children were there long before he knew anything about Seventh Day Adventist or desire to become one. Now, he is faced with a decision: Obey a rule of the Church and drop one of his wives and then get baptized as a Seventh Day Adventist, or keep his two wives (the loving thing to do) and take care of them and his children.
You see, in this part of the world, before the coming of the European and the so-called Christian Missionary, having more than one wife was acceptable to the people who live here. They had no concept of one-wife until the Christian missionaries came here and laid a guilt trip on them and told them it was wrong and a sin against God. (See my article on The Panare Indian)
My colleague is completely distraught and stressed out over this situation simply because someone within the religious system called by men, Christianity, came along and told him that his situation of having two wives does not please God and he will be subject to God’s wrath unless he corrects it. And, he cannot get baptized as a Seventh Day Adventist until he does. All I can is is, INCREDIBLE! Here is a case of a religious system where rules and regulations are the driving force that motivates it, not love. Never mind the other woman this man would have to drop and his children.
Jesus himself was the subject to one of those rules-and-regulations-is-a-driving-force-not-love moments.The account is found at Matthew 12:1-8. Here the Pharisees made a very big deal out of Jesus and his disciples, who had a need – they were hungry – began eating heads of grain in a grain field they were in on the Sabbath. As far as the Pharisees were concerned, this was against the rules (the Law Covenant). Jesus admonished them and showed that what he and his disciples were doing was not a sin or violation of the Law or anything worth condemning them over; that they were innocent of any wrong doing. Jesus corrected their thinking by telling them at Matthew 12:7-8:
If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.
These Pharisees were so in tune with keeping rules and regulations that they forgot about love. Love is what allows one to show mercy and not take a condemnatory attitude towards others. Neither did these Pharisees understand what Jesus was saying in this Scripture: For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath. In other words, Jesus was telling them that he fulfilled the keeping of the Sabbath law requirement as he fulfilled the Law. So he was telling them not to judge and condemn others on the basis of The Law that he fulfilled.
I personally know of a former 30 plus years association as a Jehovah’s Witness, one cannot join that organization unless certain in-house rules and regulations are met and kept. If you do not keep them, you can and most likely will be expelled (disfellowshiped) from the Watch Tower organization. Some of these rules and regulations are as follows.
Before One Can Become a Candidate to Get Baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness the Person Must:
- Study one or two of the publications with a qualified baptized Jehovah’s Witness. These are called Bible Studies.
- Regularly attend the five weekly meetings held at the Kingdom Hall.
- Engage in the Field Service as one progresses in their study.
- Meet with a body of Elders and successfully answer a series of so-called Bible questions which also appear in the publications studied. (Though the Watch Tower calls these Bible Studies, they are really “Watch Tower Publication Studies” which amount to the candidate being indoctrinated into believing as the Watch Tower organization teaches, not necessarily what Christ teaches. This is a real danger because, at the end of the day, the candidate believes what he believes is from God and Christ.
After One Is Baptized As a Jehovah’s Witness, They Must:
- Continue study of the Watch Tower Publications.
- Regularly attend all meetings held at the Kingdom Hall.
- Actively engage in the Field Service arrangement of doing door-to-door and house-to-house work discussing and placing Watch Tower publications with the householder in hopes to make return visits and starting Bible Studies with them and bringing them into the Watch Tower organization as members. Regular Publishers were expected to put in a minimum of ten hours per month.
- Live what the Watch Tower defines as clean lives. This includes one’s conduct and dressing a certain way. Outward image and appearance is everything. It is a Eurocentric image that is portrayed and held up as an example. Thus, what one sees within the Watch Tower organization worldwide – consisting of persons of ALL races among the human family – are persons who are African, Asian, Arab, and Hispanic “dressed up” externally and internally like persons of European descent. Even the publications portray Adam, Eve, Angels, Jesus, The Prophets, The Apostles, etc as persons of European descent.
Even the power base at the top – The Governing Body – is primarily all White men and it has been that way since the organizations founding. Only recently has a Black Man, Samuel Herd, been added as a member of that Body and he – as far as I am concerned – was already Europeanized before he was chosen to join that Body. It is very rare – and even frowned upon – if Black persons, for example, where to wear traditional African clothing to a Kingdom Hall meeting. It projects the wrong image. I tell you, persons of European descent within the Watch Tower power base are feared and revered. It is a part of the subtle conditioning and indoctrination all who might become Jehovah’s Witnesses are subjected to. The many books and magazines that organization publishes reinforce that Eurocentric – supposedly clean – image. What I just said was not said out of hate or vindictiveness as that is not how I feel about anyone – especially my former Brethren. What was just stated is a fact that who are Jehovah’s Witnesses of color think about but who are afraid to talk about.
All of the above I presented to show how the keeping of rules and regulations by these religious organizations is more important to them than the practice and display of love, kindness, forgiveness, and mercy. The Apostle Paul said it best at Galatians 5:22-23:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
There is no law. Think about that! The fruit of the Spirit is Love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. So why are these so-called religious organizations teaching that we are bound and under the Ten Commandments (which are the first ten commandments of the Law Covenant)? Jesus would say to them: If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.
The Religious system called by men, Christianity DOES NOT understand what Jesus’ words mean.
The religious system called by men, Christianity, thinks, believes and behaves in the same manner as the Pharisees. They condemn the innocent because they judge them guilty of not keeping rules and regulations.
Even today in a world so full of religion of various types, is it reasonable to believe that God is going to destroy billions of persons because they either (1) did not accept Christ as their Lord and Savior or (2) do not renounce their own religions that they were raised into or adopted?
The religious system called by men, Christianity, is selfish and shows time and time again that it is “rules, regulations, and rituals” is what is important to them. And, it is these rules, regulations, and rituals that it seeks to bring persons into captivity under. It really expects persons of all religions to disavow their religions and accept Christianity, yet Christianity will not reciprocate. It, like all of the others, are too preoccupied and embroiled in keeping, rules, regulations and rituals as well as fighting among themselves to prove the other one false, that they have forgotten love of God, love of neighbor, love of enemy and love of each other and the fruitage of the Spirit. They completely miss the boat of how Christ conducted himself and treated others; even those who did not accept him.
Myself, an African American, have a difficult time accepting a religious system that aggressively and insistently portrays Adam, Eve, Angels, The Prophets, Jesus, God, etc in the likeness of the man of European descent. This imposition raises high in my mind a red flag. What would arrogate someone to do that? I will NEVER NEVER accept and subjugate myself to such portrayals nor teach them. My conscience does not allow it. I will teach the truth about Christ. Truth will painful to listen to and accept in this world. Why? Because of this worlds invisible ruler. The lie that is masquerading as truth is what is widely accepted. It should be expected that the truth written or spoken will not be readily accepted in this world. That is why when a simple truthful statement made to members within Christianity such as “Adam, Eve, Angels, Jesus, etc should not be portrayed in the likeness of the person of European descent – or in the likeness of ANY race among the human family” – many of those members have a real problem with that statement and YOU because YOU made it. They unfairly claim you to be racist! What a cop out? Yet, it would not be widely accepted in art, film, literature, religion, and education to predominately portray those persons in the likeness of the African; which would also be wrong to do. Yet, if it was done, there is absolutely no way persons of European descent would accept it or allow their children to be subjected to such portrayals. I simply cannot imagine White households having paintings and pictures of Jesus portrayed as a Black man hanging in their homes or churches. Yet, persons of color are expected to accept him into their homes as a White man and have their children subjected to such false images. They never stop to imagine what seeing such portrayals do the young and impressionable minds of Black, Asian, and Hispanic children: They grow up revering White people. They look up upon them differently than themselves. This disturbs me a great deal and I am certain that it is all by design.
Here in Africa, the country I live in now, this reverence and fear of the White man is so pronounced that you can cut it with a knife. Very few Africans I have met would ever reject an image or picture of Jesus portrayed as a White man or angel as a winged pale-skinned White baby or child. Some will even argue you down about it and defend it. That is what I call being in captivity and I say “Shame on you, Christianity” for what you have done and what you continue to do – without conscience – to the human family: Lie to it, mislead it and control it.
In fact, all that I write and speak to others is to impress upon them the falseness of such portrayals and that they should not be accepted. If a religious system would so arrogate itself to knowingly and falsely portray someone it has never seen or can see, then there is NOTHING it would NOT DO as far as teaching anything falsely. How can it be trusted?
While there is no doubt in my mind that there is a Creator and a Messiah, I am certain that they are not as the man of European descent has portrayed them. It is simply not possible for ANY race among mankind to do that. Too, I am certain that the man of European descent has lied and is still lying about God and Christ. This man has taken the entire world down a wrong path and has misrepresented in word and conduct Christ’s teachings. Yet, in his “I know everything mentality” it is very difficult to convince him otherwise. His mouthpiece for disseminating into the world erroneous teachings and outright lies about God and Christ is the bulk religious system he calls Christianity.
One of the many things he has lied about and misled the entire world about is whether Christs followers are under the Ten Commandments.
Many Already Held Captive To This Teaching
The other day (August 22, 2013) I was engaged in a discussion with a Seventh Day Adventist at my place of work. He believes that Christs follwers are under the Ten Commandments. He sited Revelation 12:17 which reads (KJV):
And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Note: Other Bible translations do not use the word commandments but commands.
I asked him why did he think that this Scripture was referring to the Ten Commandments? His response was, “I assure you that it does.”
Well, such a statement without substantiation does nothing for me. I guess I was supposed to just take his word for it? I explained to him (and would show him) that God gave many commands that did not fall within The Ten Words or Ten Commandments. On such command can be found at Luke 9:35 where The Most High God commands:
A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.
Are you keeping this command?
Jesus [the] Christ gave his disciples a command at Matthew 28:19-20:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Jesus said “Go” …. and to teach others everything he commanded his disciples.
In both of the above instances we have commands that are NOT a part of the Ten Commandments. “So, how do know that the Scripture at Revelation 12:17 is referring to the Ten Commandments?”
Beneath this persons belief that Christs followers are under the Ten Commandments was not a desire to know what Christ taught about this, but a desire to maintain what a religious system was teaching him. I see this all the time. It is subtle but it is there: The religious system called by men Christianity is teaching the persons that it captures to oppose Christ. This is what I next showed my colleague.
An Agreement Made Between Ancient Israel and God
To show that Christs followers are not under the law, I had to first show my colleague that the Law Covenant could not have been binding on Christians because there was no such thing as a Christian when it was given. I also had to explain to him what a covenant is because he did not know. A covenant is an agreement or contract made between two parties. If either party broke that contract or agreement, the contract would be nulled; that is, no longer binding. The party breaking the agreement liable to pay damages or penalties.
I used the example of a Landlord and a person who enters into a lease agreement. That lease agreement could detail many rules and regulations that the Leasee agrees to abide by, such as paying rent on time and making repairs to the property should he cause damage to it. Likewise, the Leassor might agree to make reasonable repairs to the property due to circumstances beyond the Leasees control. Both the Leasee and Leasor sign the agreement and both are bound by it.
The Ten Commandments are the first ten of more than 600 rules and regulations (moral and ceremonial) that was a covenant made between Ancent Israel and God through the Prophet Moses. This covenant is called the Law Covenant or the Mosiac Law. The first five books of Genesis to Deuteronomy were referred to as The Law of Moses. In this situation Moses acted as the mediator between Israel and God to that Law. (There was no Christ at that time to be mediator). Moses was not God was he? Of course not, but he was sent by God. Just as Jesus is not God, but was sent by God as our mediator today.
That Law of Moses was validated by the sacrificial blood of goats and bulls. When the people of Israel back then heard the Law read to them they would agree to be obedient to all that God had spoken.
I showed my friend why it was necessary for God to give a Law to Israel. I directed him to Galatians 3:19. And I asked him to consider the words of the Apostle Paul very carefully:
Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.
The Law was given to make transgressions (sins) manifest. In other words, to show Israel what God considered transgression. More importantly I wanted my colleague to see the last part of Galatians 3:19 where it says “until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come.”
This meant that the Law would be enforce upon Israel until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. Who was that Seed? Jesus [the] Christ. So the Law would end when Jesus [the] Christ would arrive on the scene.
Fullfillment of the Law
At Matthew 5:17 that Seed, Jesus [the] Christ – The Promised Seed – said:
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
The nation of Israel had been “late paying the rent” so-to-speak. In other words, they fell short of holding up their end of the Covenant. They knew this, too! Especially the teachers of the Law. They knew that they were being hypocritical in demanding that the people keep the letter of the Law but they themselves would not keep it. There is no doubt that as the many thousands of years transpired up to the arrival of that Seed, Israel was in a real mess and in deep debt to God. One can only imagine the guilty or seared consciences of the religious leaders and the people knowing deep down inside they were in debt to God for not living up to keeping His Law.
How many of us who have entered into agreements to rent apartments or make payments on a car miss a payment are not bothered by it? We might even avoid the party we are in debt to (transgressed against). Even the man Adam hid himself when he transgressed against God.
Because one breaks an agreement does not make the agreement go way. Others may come in and enter into that same agreement to rent an apartment. Someone might even step in and take over the lease for us and make the payments in our behalf and bail us out That is exactly what the Seed that would come would do in behalf of Israel. He would fulfill the contract or covenant they had with God.
Yet, the arrival of this Seed Jesus [the] Christ was not to abolish God’s perfect Law but to fulfill it in behalf of Israel to which the covenant was made with. That is why God sent His Son to the Jews. It was to them that the agreement was made and no one else. So what the Seed Christ Jesus did was satisfy the contract Israel had been God once and for all. God’s perfect Law remained, but Israel and no one else was under any obligation or contract to keep it. Therefore, they were released from ever having to fulfill the contract they entered into. Jesus fulfilled it. Jesus now (not Moses) would step in as mediator between Israel and God and it would be his blood (not the blood of sheep and bulls) that would put Israel in an approved standing before God. All that would be required of Israel would be to learn from Christ and believe that he was the one God sent to bail them out and release them from their debt to Him. That is why Jesus could say TO THE JEWS at John 8:31-32:
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
What would discipleship to Christ set the Jews free from? From keeping that contract, the Law Covenant. The Jews would have to begin listening to what Jesus was saying to them and clinging to what he was teaching: The Truth. The Law Covenant was a tutor that would lead the Jews to someone and something much greater, The Christ. Yet, the eyes and hears of so many of them back then were closed. Such is it today, even among the many proclaiming Christ as Lord, they believe they are under a Law that was never given to them.
If Christ Released The Jews Who Would Believe Him From The Law Covenant, Why Do So Many Claiming To Be His Followers Believe THEY Are Under That Law?
Many today claiming that Christs followers are under a Law NEVER given to them never allow their thinking to go as far as the question asked above. Why would Jesus fulfill the Law Covenant for Israel and then make it binding on his followers? He would not, and that is clear from what he said at John 8:31-32. So where does this belief come from? Answer: Religious organization, namely the religious system called by men, Christianity. It outright misleads and lies with a straight face and has the audacity to get offended when one questions it, challenges it, exposes it, and calls it out. It does not want persons to learn from Christ. It wants persons to LEARN FROM THEM. Thus, a discipleship – a membership – to a religious system rather than a discipleship and a joining to the person of the Christ, the one The Most High God says we are to listen to. (Luke 9:35)
The truth of this can be seen in the many so-called Christian names that people have created and adopted for themselves such as Catholics, Lutherans, Seventh Day Adventist, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Pentcostals, Methodist, Christian, etc. Names and titles Jesus NEVER told his disciples to be known as. His call to them were to be simply his disciples. (Persons taught by him). All of these divisive and fancy names and titles are from men.
Christ Is The End of the Law
To demonstrate how so tightly controlled the religious system called by men, Christianity, has over the hearts and minds of persons and to demonstrate how many within its walls outright defy and oppose God and Christ can be seen in the Scriptures I am about to present. It was these Scriptures that I presented to the person I was having a discussion with. Each and every time I had him read for himself out loud the following Scriptures, he ignored them. It was as if he did not want to see them. Each and every time he attempted to change the subject. Each and every time I had to draw him back and have him confront these Scriptures up against what he was being told by his church.
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
What is unclear about this Scripture? Is it not in harmony with what Jesus (The Seed) said at Matthew 5:17? This person, who is a Seventh Day Adventist believes in a literal 24-hour Sabbath day (Saturday). Well, that would end as well because it was a part of the law. Jesus aptly demonstrated that there was no special day of the week that would be the Sabbath as his disciples were hungry and plucked heads of grain to eat on the Sabbath. The Pharisees who saw them took exception to them doing this on their Sabbath day. Jesus corrected their thinking and to show the Law was no longer in effect. That he fulfilled that Law and thus is Lord of the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:1-17)
But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
We (The Jews) have ben released from the Law. What is unclear about this Scripture?
Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace.
I wanted my colleague to especially pay attention to this Scripture because he was claiming that Christs followers were under the Law Commandments (in his mind, the Ten Commandments). Yet, this Scripture that the Seed (Christ Jesus) ABOLISHED in his flesh the enmity, even THE LAW COMMANDMENTS contained in ordinances (rules and regulations) …
Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
What handwritten document is this referring to? The one written by God’s’ finger. Jesus [the] Christ wiped out the requirements (Laws) the Jews were bound to.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.
When it says Christ redeemed us, it is referring to the Jews being bailed out from the curse of the Law. That curse was death if they failed to keep it. When we are told that Christ became a curse for us, it means he died for us.
If One Believes They Are Under The Law They Have No Faith
For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless. (Romans 4:14)
What is the Apostle Paul saying here? That those Jews who still clung to the belief that they were under the Law were rejecting they PROMISE that a Seed would come to end and fulfill it. (Gal 3:19)
That they were putting their faith in a Law and not the Seed; and to them The Promise (Jesus [the] Christ) was of no account or worthless to them. Christs fulfillment of the Law held no value to them. It would be an outright rejection of Christ and why God sent him. It would be as God never sent him.
Well, that is exactly the mentality of the many today who believe they MUST keep the Ten Commandments. They depend on the law and faith in the promise that Christ fulfilled it carries no value to them.
Note: Jesus never separated the Law into Ten Commandments and other Commandments. This can be seen from reading what he said at Matthew 5:17, 21, 23, 27, 31, and 38. The separation and the teaching that persons are bound to keep the Ten Commandments come from men and their religious organizations.
What About Christs Followers?
Are those who would be Christs followers under the Law or The Ten Commandments? From the above information one should be able to reason that they are not. No matter if one is a Jew who becomes a disciple of Christ or not a Jew and becomes a disciple, they are not under an old agreement (covenant) that (1) Was made between Israel and God and (2) a Law Christ fulfilled and ended.
So what commandments are Christs followers under? Christ himself tells us at Matthew 22:37-40:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.
It is also interesting to note here that Christ directs us to love God with all of our hearts, soul and mind. Complete and total love, trust, reliance, obediance and faith in him. Yet, when God commands many to listen to His Son, they prefer to listen to the voices of religious organizations that tell them something totally different from what Christ taught. Case in point and the topic of this article: That Christs followers are under the Ten Commandments. Christ taught that his followers would NOT be under a Law Covenant and religious organizations within Christianity teach defiantly that they ARE.
At John 13:34-35 Christ gave a new commandment and said by THAT COMMANDMENT one would know that they were his disciples (not by keeping the Ten Commandments):
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
This new commandment is that his disciples love EACH OTHER.
As many of you who visit this website know, I mention quite often the more than 41,000 contending Christian denominations in the world. Many of them do not like one another. In more than a few cases their is outright hatred and even deadly war. Yet, they ALL say that they are Christian.
Can one say that they are keeping this new commandment? I know that my Master has taught:
- Love of God
- Love of Neighbor
- Love of Enemy
- Love of each other (Disciples)
In all four cases we see LOVE. Yet, what is called by men, Christianity, has failed terribly in all four instances. The misconception many have is that they think by joining a so-called Christian religious organization they are practicing these things. Not so. Rather, they are being indoctrinated NOT to do these things while made made to believe that they are. And, as stated earlier, that indoctrination is to make them be in defiance to what God and Christ has told us.
As with my Seventh Day Adventist colleague, inspite of the Scriptures he read that shows that Israel was released from having to keep the Law so why would Christians be subject to a Law not given to them and thus be required to keep it. If not Jews, why would Christians? He still rejected what was obvious. I was not surprised as that is what Christianity does: It captures, indoctrinates, and prevents the truth from shining through. It is very effective in what it does to persons. The lure of membership into the religious organization of Christianity is emotionalism. Once they get the new convert emotionally attached and connected into their system, they are plugged in and wired up and taken mentally captive. Emotionalism is the opposite of reason, thus making them difficult to reason with. So in spite of all I showed him, he would change the subject so as not to confront the truth. I know that it not my job to convince him or anyone else. But I know that the Scriptures I showed him will haunt hm. He cannot escape them.
I recall when I first met this person and before he even got deeply involved with the Seventh Day Adventist, he would come to me with questions and was very excited about what I showed him as what Christ taught about certain things. I remember cautioning him way back then to be careful that he do not let religious organization mold him to think and believe contrary to what Christ taught. I recall telling him that since he desired so badly to become a Seventh Day Adventist that he is already on the path to being taken captive and that a day would come when he and I would have discussions and he would defend the teachings of a religious organization rather than defend what Christ taught.
Well here it is: He has been taught that he MUST keep the Ten Commandments and Christ taught that his followers are not under the Law Covenant. So we see how he has been made to defy what Christ says and willing to avoid what Christ said in preference to what a religious organization says.
Even the baptismal vow he will have to take (he is not baptized yet) as a Seventh Day Adventist involves agreeing to thirteen vows. This is entering into a COVENANT with a religious organization. It was God who instituted a Law Covenant with Ancient Israel and Himself. That covenant meant sustained life and the approval and blessing of God upon them if they keep that law. Now, we see religious organizations acting like God and making covenants with those who would enter into them. If the agreement (vows) are keep the person would have the blessing of THAT church. God’s approval really is not a factor.
I know this because I took a similar vow before I could become one of Jehovah’s Witnesses many years ago.
Yet, my friend cannot become a Seventh Day Adventist until he satisfies a personal matter in order to qualify to make ALL of the vows.
The pull is not to be a disciple of Christ – who was not into all of this reversion BACK TO Law Keeping – but to become a Seventh Day Adventist. Many refuse to see what is going on. They are being taken into captivity so that they will not be able to get to Christ and receive the truth from him.
In closing Jesus said concerning his commandments at John 15:15-17:
If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
Remember what CHRISTS COMMANDMENTS ARE? I spoke of them above. These are the commandment his followers are OBLIGATED to observe. If we do this, we show we love him above any human or human agency and what THEY teach as commands. And, it will not be through a book (or any book) called The Bible that we will receive the Spirit of truth, but by Holy Spirit which God gives to Christ and Christ to us. No detours from God into a book and then to us.
The Lesson: Prayer is the most powerful mechanism we have in receiving God’s wisdom, knowledge and understanding from God through His Christ. It was never a book men created and slapped a name on and call the Bible and holy and the Word of God.
If God’s Holy Spirit is in us then no book is needed. If we observe the first command Jesus gave – To love God with all of our heart, mind and soul – then the more abundantly we will have that Holy Spirit. A book called The Bible would pale in comparison to what will be in us.
Many have yet to realize this power. That is why Christianity pushes leather and paper (The Bible) and lying to its captives so as to prevent them from tapping into the exercise the of total and complete love of, faith, and reliance on God so as to look to him as the souce of their wisdom, understanding and knowledge. No book can contain Gods vast wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Yet, that is where Christianity keeps it’s captives as they have been lied to and told that a book man gave the name to – The Bible – is the word of God. Another act of defiance to God as His Son has been identified as The Word of God and He told us to listen to that one.
I know – and even expect – that many claiming to be followers of Christ will move forward, unaccepting of the truth that Christ ended the Law Covenant requirement for the Jews way back then and it was never a covenant made between those who would be his followers and God. They will continue to declare the lie, in opposition to Christ, “Christ is NOT the end of the law” and believe and teach that men and women are under the Ten Commandments. (See Romans 10:4) They do not realize that when they teach the OPPOSITE of what Christ taught they place themselves in an anti (opposing) Christ posture before God.
It should be a simple matter that one would think that a follower of Christ would accept: If it is written that “Christ is the end of the Law,” what, then is their problem? What would possess them to staunchly fight against, bypass and overlook such a statement and INSTEAD teach that we are under The Law?
Dear read, please listen to Christ and what he has said. Put human and human agency to the test when they say and teach things Jesus did not. This is pleasing to God when you do this. No, it is not pleasing to the religious systems and persons within them who teach these lies, but they are not the ones we are to be pleasing anyway.
