5-24-2015 weekly message

Meditation of the week: Psalms 40:1-17

Main scripture: Ezekiel 18:20-30

Subject: The unlimited grace given through the Lord Jesus Christ

       To understand how much great grace has been given unto them believing the Lord Jesus Christ took away the sin of the world including our sins through receiving all sins upon his body in the age of grace, we have to compare the grace under the law given unto the Jews in the age of the law.

        Upon hearing the word of God given unto prophet Ezekiel, we may understand how much the Jews had to live in fear and trembling under the law of God. The LORD God gave a message of warning for the Jews, not the message of grace, but of fear:

 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.

….. But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.”(EZ. 18:20-22,24)

         Yeah! Under the law, whosoever remember the sin against the law, they had to bring forth the sacrificing offering unto their priest; and they had to lay hand unto the animal to transfer their sins unto them, and kill them unto shedding blood. And their priests poured out the blood of the sacrifice down to the alter, and cut their body in pieces, and burn them all with the organs on the alter. The, their sins were forgiven through burning with the sacrifice. For their whole life, they had to kill their sacrificing animals for their sins whenever they sinned. What a painful and fearful life it was! The blood of animals couldn’t purify their conscience through the blood of animals, they had to pay for their sins continuously.

        The reason why the LORD God gave the law was to have them understand that they were born as sinners knowing that they couldn’t help sinning continuously; but they still not understand this. To take away the sins of the law through remission of sins God was born in the name of Jesus, and he stood before them. But they were spiritually blinded so that they couldn’t see him at all. Even the so called teachers of the law such as Pharisees and Scribes never understood their sins rooted within them. They never understood all their sins coming from their heart; and they paid attention to their outward behavior with caution teaching others in the same way.

          Jesus spoke unto the Jews under the law:

 “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:

But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

….. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:

But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.”(Matt. 5:21,22,27-30)

       The Lord Jesus rebuked Pharisees and Scribes once again, because they called themselves the teachers of the law convincing others that they were living according to the law perfectly:

“Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:

There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.”(Mark 7:14-16)

         Even the disciples couldn’t understand the parable spoken unto Pharisees and Scribes; Jesus explained about the parable unto them again:

“Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;

Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?

And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.”(Mark 7:18-23)

       The LORD God already spoke of the heart of man through prophet Jeremiah long time ago:

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.”(Jer. 17:9,10)

        Yeah! The blood of animal couldn’t cleanse the sins in the heart of man in the time of the law when people sinned. How the blood of animal could cleanse the sins in the heart of man? How the blood of animals redeems the sins of man that says himself the best creature among all the creation? What a shame it is! But the Jews under the law never understood such a shameful thing. Apostle Paul born as a Jew and saved understanding himself a sinner testified of the great truth through the Holy Ghost:

“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”(Rom. 3:19,20)

           In other word, if someone insist that he has never committed sin against the Ten Commandment at all before the eyes of men, he may look as an angel, but the eyes of God are seeing thirteen kinds of evil rooted in his DNA in the blood inherited from Adam. Jesus rebuked Pharisees and Scribes for their hypocrisy:

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.”(Matt. 23:25-28)

       Jesus was asking Pharisees and Scribes to cleanse their heart. But unfortunately, no one can cleanse their heart to take away the sins in their heart. They couldn’t understand Jesus as the one that take away the sin of the world as testified by John the Baptist; they were destined to fall into the hell living in the midst of sin. Even nowadays, so many hypocrites including so called Christians sitting in the pew of church to worship the Lord God still not understand this truth, but trying to make them righteous through many kinds of ritual activities; finally they are to be falling into the hell.

        Apostle Paul testified unto the Hebrew that know the law of God of the grace that God cleanse the sins in the heart of man through his blood:

“For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.

But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.

For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:

In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;

Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.

By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”(Heb. 10:1-10)

       Yeah! Through the death of Jesus just once, his blood cleanse all sins and take them away for them that believe on him. Therefore, it is no necessary for us to bring forth sacrifice and offerings whenever we sins as the time under the law. Apostle Paul testified of this once again unto the Hebrews:

“And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.

For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.”(Heb. 10:11-14)

       Therefore, they that have redemption through the blood of Jesus, even the forgiveness of sins(Co;. 1:14) are justified before God so that they can serve him. Apostle Paul testified of them:

“But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”(Heb. 9:11-14)

         Yeah! There is only one way to receive the remission of sins in the heart of man through believing the Lord Jesus Christ that died for our sins shedding his blood, and buried, and rose again third day. And only they that are purified their conscience through believing the power of his blood are born again of the Spirit so that they may call God their Father God, and worship him. Not only this, but he gave us glorious joint-heirs with Christ to reign with him in his kingdom. Therefore we should not forget such a great grace, and walk in trembling and fear not to defile the conscience that was purified by the blood of Jesus. Confessing sins continuously until he comes, we are to be prepared to see the Lord without spot and dot as well as wrinkle cleansed by the waters in the words of God (Eph. 5:26). No one can condemn us at all, nor lay anything to charge us at all either! Amen! Hallelujah!