SOME THINGS ARE NOT AS THEY APPEAR

SOME THINGS ARE NOT AS THEY APPEAR When scriptures from the Bible are read it is important to understand what the setting was at the time and particularly be aware that some communication is contemporary and time changes the original intended meaning. An idiom spoken 2000 years ago if taken literally will misrepresent the true meaning. An idiom spoken today will be as vague in 2000 years as an idiom spoken 2000 years ago. You have heard it said, T hat guy is on fire for the Lord. This isn t taken literally; it is a figure of speech that this man loves and doing the Lord s work. So the first thought, t his is figuratively speaking and using the mind of Christ J ew ish idioms will become obvious. 2000 years ago, when Jesus said, I f your eye offends you, pluck it out. Jesus also used the word, hell as a destination if you don t pluck out your eye. This was a Jewish idiom and Jesus was saying, I f you have an inaccurate perception and do not correct it you w ill lose your reputation. Eye is a term for perceiving. Today, he has an e ye for good deals. H ell, in this conversation with Jesus, is Gehenna and described a trash dump outside of Jerusalem. Today it could be said, T hrow that guy and his bad idea into the garbage. Or, he is full of s t. It is ludicrous to believe Jesus was speaking about a real eye and later he speaks of cutting your hand and foot off. Fundamental Muslims in Saudi Arabia are the only ones who practice this. The environment around Jerusalem when Jesus was teaching was mostly Pagan and the citizens listening to Jesus were raised on stories about Paganism. Babylon was near and the Pagan Roman s held Jews in bondage. 1

This new and different Godly philosophy Jesus was telling everyone was even a departure from the strict and impossible to keep Jewish laws that the Pharisees randomly condemned anyone they would choose. A good example of Jesus teaching, using parables in the first century, is the rich man and beggar. Many Christians support their belief in hell, as permitted by God, for eternal torment, when they take this parable literally. Remember the N ew Covenant begins after Jesus resurrection or in Acts and the metaphor or parable about the rich man and Lazarus is an Old Covenant text and is irrelevant to New Covenant believers. Even though this story is not relevant I want to talk about the rich man and Lazarus. This will be an attempt to program traditional Christians to take portions of the King James Version as figures of contemporary speech and understand the conditions when spoken can pervert the true intentions of God. Just a few minutes, before Jesus told the rich man and beggar parable, he brought up that John announced his coming and his arrival would be accompanied with a new message. Luke 16:16 The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presses into it. Presses into it means receives a good life by believing in the kingdom of God. The citizens listening to Jesus respected John the Baptist and then they heard Jesus say, Y our lives w ill be good w hen you receive the kingdom of God message. Jesus, after announcing the kingdom of God life, begins his communication describing the conditions of the rich man and the beggar. Luke 16:19-31 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. At the next point in his story Jesus brings the heathen or pagan location of the rich man and Lazarus. A gulf betw een good and evil is always a heathen description of life after death and is not a scriptural definition of life after death. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried. And in hell he lifted 2

up his eyes, being in torments, and sees Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. Moses said in Numbers, T he spirits of all men are from God. Solomon said in Ecclesiastes, T hat all spirits after death go back to God w ho gave them. This confirms that a gulf after death is a heathen parable and is not supported by scripture. And Abraham calls the rich man, Son. But Abraham said, Son, remember that you in your lifetime received good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us there is a great gulf fixed: so that they that would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou would send him to my father's house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham said unto him, they have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, No, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, if they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. It must also be remembered that this is only a parable, and not real history; for, this very parable is found in the Gemara Babylonicum. The story was not new, then, not original with Jesus, but known among Jerusalem citizens before He repeated it. He borrowed the parable from them, and employed it to show what awaited them without the promised kingdom of God he came to communicate if they had believed him while living. It should be remembered that the Jews had borrowed their ideas of torment in a future state from the heathen, and of course they were obliged to borrow their terms to express this. The good news of Jesus gospel is, the kingdom of God w ill remove any gulf betw een prosperity and poverty and every citizen, rich or poor, can enjoy the blessing of Abraham or the kingdom of God life. This story has another story inside that speaks of the kingdom of God: The beggar sitting in the bosom of Abraham is a metaphor within a metaphor and is describing how the blessings of Abraham become available to a citizen living in the kingdom of God. The blessings of Abraham are detailed in Deuteronomy 3

28: 1 14 and describe earthly blessings for citizens in the kingdom of God and there is no mention of anything after death. In additions to the Jewish idioms, metaphors and borrowed heathen parables used by Jesus, there was a disciple of Jesus, named John, who was also an abolitionist, like Jesus, and he spoke in Jewish Apocalyptic expressions. Jesus was an abolitionist who was destined to die on a cross and he spoke in contemporary idioms, metaphors and heathen parables without fear of death. John was also an abolitionist who wanted to live and spoke in apocalyptic texts so the Romans wouldn t kill him for tyranny. Jesus came to earth to set his kinsmen, the Jews, spiritually free. John had a desire to physically overthrow the Roman Empire and his messages in Revelation were disguised and intended to dismantle Rome s paganism. John s followers received his messages but his apocalyptic terms gave the wrong impressions to the Romans. For example John called the Roman Pagan government T he Beast. He called their priests, False prophets. And the Emperor was T he Dragon. Rome decided to follow the teachings of Jesus to increase their political power and this accomplished John s abolitionism and the Roman Catholic Church was birthed. Revelation 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood. John is speaking the government of Rome will suddenly be removed, like an earthquake destroys and the emperor or sun will lose its reputation (sackcloth) and die into infamy (moon, having no light of itself will disappear). In 1945 President Truman released a message and the news media said, The leader of America has released an earthshaking message and dropped a nuclear bomb on Japan to totally defeat them. Understanding the book of Revelation, as apocalyptic terms designed to overthrow the Roman government, will scare the fear of hell out of you. Believing the book of Revelation, as literal and futuristic prophecies for our world and mankind, will scare the fear of hell into you. 4

Another and separate story indicative of taking scripture as literal: My wife died 2 years, 2 months and 7 days ago. And I have a great grandson that sees and talks to her on occasions. I sense an extraordinary Godly Spirit that I have never known before, on anyone, when I am close to my great grandson. He is destined for Spiritual greatness. I also talk to my wife but I don t see her. Her presence is very close. This is very comforting and is a reminder that heaven is in a different dimension here on earth, as Jesus and his Father taught in the Lord s Prayer. Some well known Christian zealots accused my great grandson as having a demon and using the story of Saul and the witch of Endor talking to the dead, Samual, to support their position. This is a real story and vividly displays the spiritual ignorance, the traditions of Christianity, and taking the Bible literally has imparted into sincere people. Satan, the master of deception, has blinded Jews and especially Christians to perceive the true message why Jesus visited earth in order to fulfill God s intended plan. Spiritual ignorance is another term for understanding God with a carnal mind and not perceiving the true message He released through Jesus. Saul was not a good example to establish a personal spiritual position. He went to a fortuneteller and with demonic revelation she faked the story of Samuel coming back from the dead and speaking to Saul. Fortunetellers are popular today and they still are counterfeiting, bringing the dead back, to talk to a live person. God accused Saul as having the sin of witchcraft. Why would anyone use a story involving witchcraft to relay a spiritual truth? Saul disguised himself and lied to the woman with the familiar spirit. Below is the story of Saul. Did you notice, as angry as God was at Saul for his disobedience, He never suggested that Saul would be tormented in hell? The sin of Saul was pretty horrific but only had earthly consequences of loosing his kingship over Israel and later his and son Jonathan s untimely deaths. Jesus came to earth as a cure for earthly consequences of sin. It is called the New Covenant or the kingdom of God. 5

I Samuel 15:11, 23, 24, and 26, It repented me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. For rebellion is as the sin of w itchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the w ord of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. I Samuel 28:7-17 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that has a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor. And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee. And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knows what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then lay thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die? And Saul swore to her by the LORD, saying, As the LORD lives, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing. Then said the woman, whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, bring me up Samuel. And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spoke to Saul, saying, why hast thou deceived me? For you are Saul. And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what saw thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth. And he said unto her, what form is he of? And she said, an old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself. And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answered me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou may make known unto me what I shall do. Then said Samuel, Wherefore then do you ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from you, and is become your enemy? And the LORD has done to him, as he spoke by me: for the LORD has rent the kingdom out of your hand, and given it to your neighbor (fellow citizen), even to David. This story of Saul is an Old Covenant history lesson and can impart some benefits for living in the New Covenant. Saul knew but rejected the w ord of the Lord that led to his e arly death. 6

The fear of people never should cause disobedience to God. Saul, previously, had women with familiar spirits killed, and now he was seeking their advice. Another lessons is, Don t go to a fortuneteller to receive truth. Still another lesson, God did not send Saul to a tormenting hell. The best lesson is, Jesus visited earth to cure sins like Saul committed and to avoid all earthly consequences for sinning. Know ing and rejecting the w ord of the Lord w ill lead to an early death. chuck@godtruth.tv February 17, 2009 7