Presents
Matthew 22
If you accept a spirit, which means "wind of doctrine", i.e. teaching, and you have not "received it", which means you have not "assayed" it by checking it out thoroughly in the Word of God, then you are in grave danger of being seduced my friend!
Jesus Christ has just finished giving the chief priests and elders of the people a Bible lesson documenting from the scriptures that the likes of them are going to be ground to powder when the Stone they rejected (Him) becomes the head of the corner, i.e. comes as King of kings and Lord of lords to put down all authority and crush the stones of their idolatrous temple, them! That did not sit very well with them, to say the least, and now they seek to lay hands on Him and kill Him.
Nevertheless, Christ is not finished with His teaching concerning the plan of God and so He continues speaking in parables those things which concern the kingdom of heaven, like who is going to be part of the first resurrection and who isn't. He begins by explaining that there could have been a wedding take place at the first advent had those who were bidden, even those He is addressing, heeded the call and come to the wedding feast! But alas, they would not come and so they themselves are rejected and the wedding will take place at the second advent and "whosoever will" heed the bidding shall take their place!
Remember from our study of the Parable of the Tares in chapter 13 that parables are teaching tools that work to the extreme ends of both understanding and misunderstanding, meaning they both reveal and make things clear to some while at the same time hiding and protecting that which is being taught from others. In other words, if the imagery and symbols used in a parable are understood by the person receiving it, then the picture the parable paints in his or her mind makes clear and simple that which is being taught. However, if the symbology is not understood then the parable becomes an enigma to that person. Such is the difference between those who are wise from studying our Father's Word, those with eyes to see and ears to hear to whom the understanding of the parables is given (Mat. 13:11), and those who are foolish and choose to follow the traditions of men instead of hearing His voice.Matthew 22:1-22
And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,
Here then is another parable, an analogy, a painted picture, an "is like", giving us more insight into the plan of salvation and the kingdom of heaven.
Let us lay a little groundwork for the parable we are about to "hear"! Make no mistake about it, there is going to be a marriage take place... for the king has determined it to be so! Do you remember back a few chapters ago (19) when Christ discussed the reason that God created both male and female and ordained that the "two shall become one flesh"? That flesh union is symbolic of the spiritual union between Christ and His church and when He returns He is expecting to marry a virgin bride all dressed in white linen. Paul talks about this in his second letter to the Corinthians:[2] The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
If Jesus Christ returns and finds that His bride-to-be has been (spiritually) sleeping with another man (the Instead-of-Jesus/Satan) and has even become (spiritually) impregnated by him, it goes without saying that He is not going to be very happy! We will discuss this more a few chapters hence when Christ says "And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days (Matthew 24:19)!" Christ is speaking in the spiritual sense, not about women literally having babies!2 Cor. 11:2-4
For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
Eve was seduced and impregnated in the fig grove by that sleazy lowlife snake (a character description of the very charming and charismatic Satan) and brought forth his child, the very first murderer, Cain! Paul is using that physical ensample (1 Cor. 10:11) to warn us of the spiritual seduction that takes place in these last days as a result of the other Jesus, the traditional one, being taught to the multitudes by the many false preachers and ministers who come in the name of Christ, i.e. as Christian preachers, etc. You "see", they come and deceive our brothers and sisters with their form of praise and worship, churchianity, but do not "feed them" as in educate them in His Word chapter by chapter and verse by verse whereby they can remain as virgins (Mat. 24:4-5).To wit, many are taught that their Jesus is going to come and "rapture" them away before the great tribulation of Satan, the false-christ. Too bad they are spiritually impregnated with that "theory" because is it not scriptural and cannot be documented.[3] But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
In fact, it is a tradition, a wind of doctrine, that is totally contrary to His Word. (For a study on our gathering back to Christ, log unto pamphlets #4147 & #4148.
If you accept a spirit, which means "wind of doctrine", i.e. teaching, and you have not "received it", which means you have not "assayed" it by checking it out thoroughly in the Word of God, then you are in grave danger of being seduced my friend![4] For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
John warns us all in 1 Jn. 4 to "try every spirit (wind of doctrine)"! Why? Because of all the false teachers that Christ warned about! 1 John 4:1 "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." That is precisely why we insist that you do not believe anyone, including us, without checking out what you are being taught in the Word of God, and in doing so be willing to cast aside the "preconceived" ideas you may already have in your forehead that influence your ability to understand the truth! Else, you have not the desire to sincerely seek the truth, only the desire to confirm what you already believe. "Preconceived" is a compound word made from "pre" meaning "before" and "conceived" meaning "impregnated".
So a marriage is definitely going to take place and you can read about it in Rev. 19.
Note: Those who fully understand "election", those who were "chosen before the foundation of the world" (Eph. 1:4) whom we discussed back in chapter 20, understand the wife of Christ, i.e. the one He already has. If you do not understand that, just give it a rest for awhile and if you continue to study His Word, it will one day return with clarity.Rev. 19:7-9
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready.
The fine linen, clean and white, which makes up the righteousness of the saints is the works of the saints, their equitable deeds, or you could even say the fruit they produced while laboring in the vineyard, i.e. their righteous acts.[8] And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Have you been called unto the wedding feast of the Lamb? That is what the parable Christ is teaching us here in Matthew 22 is all about. There is going to be a wedding for the son and the king has prepared a wedding feast to find a bride.righteousness, dikaioma, dik-ah'-yo-mah, Greek 1345; from Greek 1344 (dikaioo); an equitable deed; by implication a statute or decision :- judgment, justification, ordinance, righteousness.[9] And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
Those who received the bidding to the wedding feast would not come when His servants called them.Matthew 22:3
And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
What does one do at a wedding feast? He or she eats! In other words, the "feasting", the wedding feast, must take place before the marriage can take place. Have you done any feasting lately? What is it that we are to feast on? The Bread of Life, His Word, of course! And His table is filled up in Christ, even all the feast days if you have understanding of the "shadows", and therefore "all things are ready"! You "see", the marriage could have taken place at the first advent, but "they that were bidden to the wedding were not worthy" (vs. 8).[4] Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.
There were just too many other things that took priority in their lives. One had his own farm he was plowing and didn't have time to work in the householder's farm or vineyard! The other was too busy with his own business to "be about His Father's business". Then too, when one applies this same analogy of the "farm and merchandise" to "men of the cloth", those who say they go labor in His field, the motive becomes not that of mere neglect but that of rejection. Dr. Luke gives us a more detailed look at the excuses:[5] But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
Though business and technology are subject to change, the excuse is exactly the same today as it was yesterday.Do you have an excuse for not feasting at the table the Lord has prepared?Luke 14:18-20
And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.[19] And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.
Hey, this one was already married and couldn't come! How about that![20] And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.
The remnant are the murderers (next verse) of the house of Cain who took his servants and slew them.Matthew 22:6
And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
Who are the murderers? They are the tares we learned about in chapter 13 and you know what happens to them... they are burned up! Their city is not our city! Their temple is not our temple! For nothing they build is established upon the Rock of our salvation, which is Jesus Christ, the Word of God.[7] But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
The wedding was ready but it did not take place at the first advent because those who were bidden were not worthy. Luke 14:24 "For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper." In other words, the "feast" was right there and available to those who were bidden but they did not come partake of that feast. No feast, no wedding! The point is, one can go to church every Sunday and cry "Lord, Lord" all he wants all day long, but if one does not "feast", on His Word that one is not getting married! In fact, he or she is going to show up at the wedding completely naked and ashamed (Rev. 16:15)![8] Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
The wedding to take place is yet future so this looks forward to our day, the time just before the second advent, the time when many shall be eating and drinking (feasting) and marrying and giving in marriage to another Jesus (Mat. 24:38), the false messiah, the one we read about in 2 Cor. 11. You can read more concerning the blind, lame, etc., who are bid to the marriage in a similar parable in Luke 14, but let us suffice it to say that salvation is now open to "whosoever will" heed the call, as in "hear His voice", i.e. believe in Him (John 3:15-16)![9] Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
Christ died on the cross and now salvation is open to all peoples of all races, colors, and creed. This is what Christianity is all about. The publicans and the harlots and even the kenites can repent and heed the call and say "Yes Father, I will now go labor in the vineyard" and put on some righteous garments! Thus they are bad no more! But alas, some will try to enter in without a wedding garment and here is what happens to them:Matthew 22:10
So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
Remember from Rev. 19:8 what the fine linen, clean and white, is symbolic of... the righteousness or righteous acts of the saints. If one comes in who claims he or she has labored for Him and yet has not on a wedding garment, it will be spiritually obvious that that person has not done his Father's will as He asked and he or she is in for a big surprise! This should bring to mind that which we learned in chapter 7 concerning those who claim to have done wonderful works which they think are righteous acts and pleasing to God, but they did not do according to His will.[11] And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
They followed the iniquitous traditions of men they were fed week after week but never feasted with the Son to get to know Him. Do you think Christ is going to marry a complete stranger! Would you?Matthew 7:21-23
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.[22] Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
[23]And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
No wedding garment... then no attending the marriage, Friend! He came without any righteous acts and when asked why, he was simply speechless, dumb! In other words, he was without excuse as to why he was spiritually naked for there was no one to blame but himself. Not only that, his preacher wasn't there to help him and therefore he had to give direct answer to the king! So you see, while it is true that all are born innocent and naked into this flesh age, such will not be the case in the spiritual birth. Some will have on clean white linen garments and the others shall be spiritually naked.Matthew 22:12
And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
Here is what shall happen to those who do not make it to the wedding with a wedding garment on, which means that they will not be chosen to participate in the first resurrection when Christ returns and ushers in the Millennium.
To be bound hand and foot means they will no longer be able to carry on the iniquitous works that got them cast into darkness (i.e. cast with the rest of those in whom there is found no light of truth) in the first place.You see, the Millennium will not be a bed of roses for those who did not heed the call to the wedding feast. There shall be weeping and gnashing (grinding) of teeth, i.e. spiritual shame and pain as they are spiritually squeezed and crushed in His winepress so that hopefully they will get their act together before the great white throne judgment at the end of the Millennium when the real death (the perishing of the soul) takes place for those who refuse to believe in Him. As it is written, the Millennial reign of Christ shall be with a rod of iron , which means with firm discipline in adhering to His Word, and the just ones, the Zadok, i.e. God's elect, shall be the disciplinarians (enforcers) thereof.[13] Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Ezek-i-el (God is Strong) gives us the details of how His people shall be taught by "they" (the Zadok) the difference between the two Jesus', the Holy One and the profane one, and cause them to be "discern" between the unclean and the clean. It is sure obvious that the majority cannot do so, i.e. discern between the clean and unclean, in the generation in which we now live.Rev. 2:26-27
And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: [27] And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.Rev. 19:14-15
And the armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. [15] And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
Many who are called and claim to follow Jesus Christ in these last days are going to have a rough time in the Millennium. Take heed to the call to the wedding feast while it is still today for when the cup of His wrath is filled up, i.e. He has had it up to here with the idolatry of His people, then its over and too late to fill your lamp with oil and put on clean white linen garments.Ezekiel 44:23-24
And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. [24] And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.
How will you appear at the wedding? You can start feasting right now, you know, for His table is ready and filled to the full and there is never a want, never a famine, for those who heed the call![14] For many are called, but few are chosen.
Jesus let them know that He knew their game plan and what they were up to!
Now we are going get a good look "behind the scenes" at one of the wiles (methodeia), i.e. MO's or methods of operation, of the religious hypocrites who set themselves up and call themselves God chosen people but who wickedly seek ways to bring down and destroy Christianity and those who teach His Word boldly.
The lesson to be learned in this study is up to date and relative to this very moment as more and more laws are being passed and signed into law each day to prevent Christian pastors and ministers from teaching the truth of His Word. To that end, it is important to maintain one's credibility and remain focused in God's Word, remembering that the reason some of God's elect shall be delivered up is for "His name's sake", i.e. because of the authority and laws of God, and NOT because they breached some civil matter. You "see", the delivering up for His name's sake is to be a witness to present testimony against them.
We learned in the last verse of Matthew 21 that the Pharisees sought to lay hands on Christ but they "feared the multitude because they took Him for a prophet". So they will now do some digging and counseling in civil law to see if they can find some way to discredit Him in the eyes of the multitude and have Him delivered unto the power and authority of the governor on a civil matter (Luke 20:20).Mark 13:9
But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.
Here is what they tried to do to one who is much wiser than this bunch of low life snakes and vipers:
Again, the motive of these religious hypocrites is to try to "entrap" Jesus Christ in a civil matter... like the tax laws as we shall see.Matthew 22:15
Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle Him in His talk.
Notice in the next verse that the true instigators of the treachery remain behind the scenes, hidden from public view, whilst they send out others to do their dirty work for them! A word to the wise!took counsel, sumboulion, soom-boo'-lee-on, Greek 4824; neuter of a presumed derivative of Greek 4825 (sumboulos); advisement; specially a deliberative body, i.e. the provincial assessors or lay-court :- consultation, counsel, council.
"Sent out" is "apostello" in Greek which means just that. However, here the "agents" of the Pharisees are aligned with the Herodians who are agents of Herod, as in government officials. In other words, the objective of those with a religious agenda is to use civil law (if at all possible) to have Christ arrested and stopped from teaching the truth about them! Remember in Matthew 21:45 it was when the Pharisees "perceived that He spake of them" in exposing their lies and hypocrisy that they sought to lay hands on Him.[16] And they sent out unto Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.
Luke gives us some added detail into the method and motive of their operation.
Now let's repeat verse 16 and carefully take note of how these liberal "feigners of righteousness" used flattery to try to set up Christ. This is one of the basic tenets of Satan's methodology, so anytime someone comes to you telling you how great a person or teacher you are... put your gospel shields up and get ready to withstand some fiery darts!Luke 20:20
And they watched Him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of His words, that so they might deliver Him unto the power and authority of the governor.
What a bunch of liars and hypocrites! Who do they think they are fooling by "blowing smoke"? Not those wise in Father's Word, that's for sure! Now for the killer question:Matthew 22:16
And they sent out unto Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.
Remember from verse 15 that their intent is to "entangle Him in His talk" so we know they are waiting with "baited breath" for Him to say something like, "No, the CIRS (Caesar's Internal Revenue Service) is oppressive, illegal, unconstitutional, and violates our rights!" Then they could go to Caesar and have Him arrested as a tax evader or as one who teaches against obeying Caesar's tax laws! He would then be criminalized and made an example of before the eyes of the people.[17] Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
Jesus let them know that He knew their game plan and what they were up to! Now notice that all Jesus uses in handling this matter is wisdom and common sense. In other words, He does not even quote scripture to them.[18] But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
"Let me see the money you pay your taxes with", Christ said.[19] Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.
[20] And He saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?
Take a dollar bill from your wallet and look at it. Whose image and superscription is on it? Well, the image might lead you to believe that it belongs to the United States of America, but upon further examination you will find the superscription reads "Federal Reserve Note". The fact is, it is not even money, like a precious metal coin (gold or silver) with some intrinsic value of its own, but a loan (a note) from the Central Banking System known as the Federal Reserve Banks. In other words, it is just a piece of paper. And don't be fooled by the word "Federal" that might also lead some to think that this "money" belongs to the "Federal" Government.[21] They say unto Him, Caesar's. Then saith He unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.
The point to what Christ is showing us and teaching us is don't let some whacko tell you that you shouldn't pay your taxes or obey the civil laws and ordinances of this land.Heed the wisdom and instructions from Jesus Christ, the Word of God, and let there be no civil disobedience on your part when it comes to rendering unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's.
We learn from this that there should be no cause for a man or woman of God to be delivered up to the civil authorities for disobeying the tax laws and civil ordinances. In fact, we learned back in chapter five of Matthew that if you are delivered up for such stupidity and lack of common sense that God Himself will see to it that you pay the uttermost farthing (Mat. 5:26). You "see", if you faithfully obey the law then the hypocrites will have to go away and find some other way to have you delivered up![22] When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.
Here is a prime ensample from the Book of Daniel of what they will do... and even are doing this very day:
Daniel was a man of God with a clean record concerning the kingdom, i.e. the laws of the land. They checked his FBI files, his IRS records, and everything else they could dig up in order to find him guilty of breaking the law. This is the same thing the Pharisees tried to do to Christ. Again, always maintain your credibility in the community by obeying the laws and ordinances and paying your taxes. This does not mean you should not exercise your rights at the voting booth in an attempt to rid our government of abusers including tax and spend Herodians!Daniel 6:4-13
Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.
They could not find "occasion against" Daniel concerning the government... so... they will have to "set him up" concerning the law of his God![5] Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.
You can bet they puffed up old King Darius with their flatteries. Only Darius bought into it and will find himself taken advantage of by these hypocrites who seek to bring down a righteous man of God.[6] Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever.
Through their deceit and conniving they had a "politically correct" law passed that made Daniel's worship of God and obedience to Him ILLEGAL! This is a different matter altogether than rendering to Caesar those things which belong to him. They are passing legislation making it illegal to render unto God the things that belong to Him, i.e. the love which are the prayers and supplications of His righteous children before Him.[7] All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellors, and the captains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.
Daniel did not try to hide from his accusers nor was he intimidated one bit when he found out about the politically correct legislation that had been passed making His prayers and supplications before God illegal! In other words, his "windows were open"! (Hey, our "Windows" are open too... Windows 98, Windows 2000, and Windows XP.) By the way, the wise know that the "prayer and supplication" is the patience of the saints which is the work of God in these last days. Ephes. 6:18 "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints."[8] Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not.[9] Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree.
[10] Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
You know the rest of the story. Daniel was delivered up for serving his God and was cast into the den of lions! However, he was "sealed" by the "stone" and the "king's signet" and therefore God sent His angel to shut the mouths of the lions. That "angel" would be the same one Nebuchadnezzar saw in the burning fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abedneggo. For those with eyes to see and ears to hear, that would have been "one like the Son of God (Dan. 3:25)" who was Melchizedek, the King of the Just (Zadok).[11] Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.
Nevertheless, just recompense followed Daniel's deliverance from the den of the lions as his accusers got a taste, or should we say bite, of their own medicine.
Daniel 6:24
And the king commanded, and they brought those men which had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den.
Editor's note: It seems to me that a lesson on how to defeat terrorism is to be found in the Bible verse above. Read it again! Then read Duet. chapter 20:16-18. Note the similarity of instructions concerning the fate of the mothers and children of terrorizers. Maybe we need to bring back a Harry Truman to lead our country!
You know why they received this same fate they had in store for Daniel? Because God is completely fair and "God is Judge" which exactly what DAN-I-EL means in Hebrew! Trust in the Lord for He is the only One who can deliver in this final hour!
That is not opinion but exactly what God has said is the most important thing.Psalm 18:2
The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
In our last study we saw how Jesus Christ handled the agents sent out by the hypocritical Pharisees who remained behind the scenes to avoid public exposure while seeking to entangle or entrap Him in His words in order that they might find cause to have Him delivered into the hands of the governmental authorities for advocating or practicing such things as tax evasion. Christ simply used wisdom and common sense to cause them not only to marvel at His words but to "go their way".
Now Jesus Christ is going to show us how to handle a Biblically illiterate religious sect who uses faulty reasoning and a farfetched analogy to support to their own unfounded traditions, which in the case of the Sadducees is that there is no life after death. You "see", religionists are not at all interested in seeking truth from the Word of God for often their group identity is based on their tradition, even if it is unscriptural, and they are not about to let the truth of God's Word change their religion! It is so sad-u-see!
This was the "same day" for the opponents and adversaries of men and women who teach the truth of God's Word are relentless in their pursuit and attempts to entangle, discredit, and tempt them. Here we see a religious sect who quotes scripture but who holds fast to an unscriptural doctrine.Matthew 22:23
The same day came to Him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked Him,
Oh "Master", as in "Great Teacher", they say sanctimoniously thinking they've got Him on this one! They even use a quote from Deuteronomy 25:5 to create an unrealistic and hypothetical scenario which makes a mockery of the law designed to keep one's seed alive and prevent his family tree from dying off.[24] Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
Here is the hypothetical scenario the Sadducees create:Deut. 25:5
If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of an husband's brother unto her.[6] And it shall be, that the firstborn which she beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel.
I know of a Hollywood movie star who had seven-plus husbands but she didn't outlive them all... she just outlived their usefulness!Matthew 22:25
Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother:[26] Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh.
Hey, she probably would have lived longer had there been eight or more brothers instead of only seven! Nevertheless, here is the question the Sadducees asked Christ which exposes their ignorance of God's Word and of the exceeding greatness of His power to resurrect the dead.[27] And last of all the woman died also.
One must have a working knowledge of the overall Plan of God beginning with what happened (Rev. 12:4) in the "world that then was" (2 Pet. 3:6) that caused our Father to completely destroy that first earth age whereby it became "void and without form (tohu va bohu)" (Gen. 1:2), and why He subsequently created flesh man and "made them male and female". It was so that each child (son of God) could come down from above to be born innocent, meaning without any prior knowledge of the first earth age, and dwell in a flesh tabernacle whereby he or she could choose to love God or worship Satan.Then upon the death of the flesh, that child (son) would return home to the Father who sent him here in the first place. We who have the gospels of the New Testament are well blessed in that John in chapter three of his book explains this process in detail, i.e. being born again which is to be born from above (anothen in Greek) into the sac of water and then return to heaven in their spiritual body. John writes in 3:13 that even the Son of man, Jesus Christ, was willing to come down from above and be born of woman, showing us that God didn't ask His children to do something He wasn't willing to do Himself.[28] Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her.
However, it is also written in the Old Testament concerning what happens when a person dies. "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it (Eccles. 12:7)". The Sadducees were ignorant of the scriptures such as this one and Christ let them know that was the reason they "erred", for it is only in the scriptures, the Word of God, that correct doctrine can be established. That is why one must acquire the proper tools, like a King James Bible and a Strong's Concordance for openers, and check out the things he or she hears taught by men. Only then can one know whether or not His voice is being spoken.
Christ did not ridicule nor make fun of the Sadducees but rather used the opportunity to make the point of their Biblical ignorance and to teach them the truth concerning the matter, even though He knew that they would most likely not "stretch the old wineskin" to allow new truth to expand in their minds (Mat. 9:17). Those who allow themselves to be sore deceived (seduced) by listening to and holding fast to preacher's words who teach the religious traditions of men instead of "hearing His voice" by studying and rightly dividing the Word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15) shall always end up way off track (out of the way) and err from the truth that is written.[29] Jesus answered and said unto them,Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.
And what of His power? Does it not even make common sense that He who is "Life", the very Creator of the universe and the Maker of man, He who has all power over life and death, should also have the power to raise the dead? The apostle Paul would later speak of God's miraculous power (dunamis) and the working (operation) of His mighty power (kratos), which is His marvelous plan of salvation in raising up Jesus Christ from the dead.err, planao, plan-ah'-o, Greek 4105; from Greek 4106 (plane); to (properly cause to) roam (from safety, truth, or virtue) :- go astray, deceive, err, seduce, wander, be out of the way.
"Set Him at His own right hand" is a reference to Psalm 110 which Christ will quote to the Pharisees a few verses hence. However, the point Christ is making here to the Sadducees is that those who know the scriptures know that angels are all alike as sons of God and that woman (womb-man, i.e. a man with a womb) was formed for this flesh age only, whereby those sons could be born into this dimension. Then when the flesh body dies and they return home in their spiritual body, they are the same as before, i.e. one gender. In other words, God created all of His children 'ere the earth was even formed (Job 38:4-7) and so they were all with Him before He placed them in their mother's womb to be born of water. Read what God said concerning Jeremiah in Jer. 1:5, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." Then too, we learned a few chapters ago when the subject of divorce and remarriage came up, that the union of a man and a woman symbolizes our marriage to Jesus Christ who is the One His bride shall be married to in the resurrection.Ephes. 1:18-20
The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,[19] And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
[20] Which He wrought in Christ, when He raised him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places,
You "see", they will already be married and the exceeding joy of that union will far surpass any physical pleasure some fear they might miss out on in the resurrection! And now for a Bible lesson after the manner of the watchman, i.e. "Thus saith the Lord God" and "It is written" (Ezek. 3:4, 11), concerning (touching the subject of) the resurrection of the dead. Christ shows us this as an ensample of how to handle questions posed by religionists and then to go on and teach them from His Word, i.e. what God has to say on the matter, not man!Matthew 22:30
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.
Christ told the Sadducees that God had "spoken unto them" concerning this matter of the resurrection of the dead. If they would just take the time to listen to what He has to say (hear His voice) they would no longer be "in the dark" concerning such doctrines. So after declaring that the reason they have no answer to their question is because they lack the knowledge of His Word, Christ then takes the opportunity to teach them concerning the resurrection and the power of God by quoting what God has to say in His Word.[31]But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying,
Christ quoted this from the great Book of Exodus whereby we know from the "God of our Fathers", Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that they are alive and well just like you and me![32] I AM the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.
The fact is that no one has died the real death yet, which is the second death, the perishing of the soul in the lake of fire.Even Satan who is called the "son of perdition", i.e. the one son who has already been judged and sentenced to perish (Ezek. 28:18-19), is still alive and in heaven (Rev. 12:7). You "see", it is given unto all men once to die (the flesh death that is) before the final judgment takes place when others could receive the same judgment and sentence as Satan. It is written... Hebrews 9:27 "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." In other words, it is given unto all men to come down from above (anothen), having already been with God, and "walk through the valley of the shadow of death"! We know that the death of the flesh is not the real thing but rather just a "shadow of death", which is a type of the real death which is the death of the soul in the lake of fire whereby one perishes for ever and ever! That is why Christ said not to worry about those who can kill the flesh (cause the first death) but rather fear (revere) the one who has the POWER to destroy both soul and body in gehenna, the lake of fire. The death of the flesh is NOT the perishing or death of the person. They simply go back home where they were before they came down here to earth school.Exodus 3:6
Moreover he said, I AM the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.Exodus 3:15
And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
Do not be ignorant of God's Word. Only your heavenly Father, the God of the living, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Moses and Elijah who also appeared alive and well on the mount of transfiguration, has the POWER to either destroy the soul in hellfire or grant eternal life!Matthew 10:28
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Amazing, isn't it? Christ's doctrine that He taught was simply to quote with clarity directly from the scriptures, the Word of God. Even people today are indeed astonished when they hear His Word correctly taught and rightly divided. Not only that, but His words, the Word of God after the manner of "Thus saith the Lord" and "It is written", silences those who claim to be believers but are Biblically illiterate, because they must now refute His Word... not the words of men!Matthew 22:33
And when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at His doctrine.
Now there's a surprise! Although the Pharisees were probably overjoyed to see their religious competitors put in their place, they did not deem them near the threat to their religious enterprise as Jesus Christ who heals the blind and the lame and sets people free from the bondage of religious traditions altogether. So it is time to regroup and go to Plan C which is to bring on the heavy hitters, the expert scripture lawyers to tempt Christ. Surely these highly educated men can outsmart the Living Word of God! Not![34] But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
Once again there is no motive to seek knowledge or wisdom and understanding from the Living Word of God. They are seeking "opinion" and "argument" and awaiting their chance for rebuttal![35] Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked Him a question, tempting Him, and saying,
The Scribes divided the law into "great and small" or "heavy and light" commandments and were asking Christ as to what kind of commandment was great. Again, they were expecting Him to give an opinion, like unto a Talmudic opinion, on the matter as did the scribes and rabbis, etc. However, Christ did not give His opinion but instead quoted from the Word of God declaring what God had to say on the matter... beginning with Deut. 6:5.lawyer, G3544 nomikos nom-ik-os'[36] Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
From G3551; according (or pertaining) tolaw, that is, legal (ceremonially); as noun, an expertin the (Mosaic) law: - about the law, lawyer.
The LORD our God is the only LORD there is. Therefore, hear Him, O Israel, and quit listening to the vain and confusing traditions of men![37] Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.Deut. 6:4-5
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
Those who love Him seek His knowledge and wisdom and keep His commands. John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments." You will also find the words Christ quoted in Deut. 10:12 pertaining to what it is God says He wants from His children.[5] And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
This is what our Father says He wants from His children...to fear (revere) Him and walk in His ways, which are the ways of truth and justice, to love Him and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul..Deut. 10:12
And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
Again, that is not opinion but exactly what God has said is the most important thing. In fact, that love for Him that He desires from His children sums up the first five of the Ten Commandments. Christ takes it one step further though and continues to teach the lawyers with the clarity and simplicity of the scriptures themselves.Matthew 22:38
This is the first and great commandment.
This time Christ quotes from Leviticus 19:18 which sums up the last five of the Ten Commandments.[39] And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Here is the sum of the matter.Leviticus 19:18
Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I AM the LORD.
That is what it is all about, LOVE, loving God and serving Him. So while the scripture lawyers huddle in a sidebar to try and figure out how to refute the simplicity of what God has said, Jesus takes the opportunity and initiative turn it around and them put them on the defensive.Matthew 22:40
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The Greek word for "Christ" is "christos" which means "anointed", i.e. The Messiah. Of course Christ knew they would answer "The Son of David" for it is written in 2 Sam. 7:12, 16 and Jeremiah 23:5, "Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth."[41] While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,[42] Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto Him, The Son of David.
Now Christ quotes from the very words of David in asking the "learned men", those brilliant scripture lawyers, to explain how it is if Christ, the Messiah, is David's son, how is it that David could call Him Lord declaring that He sits on the right hand of God until His enemies are made His footstool, i.e. UNTIL He comes with all power as King of kings and Lord of Lords to establish His kingdom and rule with a rod of iron? Explain that please! In other words, if Messiah is the son of David, how do you explain what Ps. 110 says? (We will go there shortly.)
How is it that Christ can sit on the right hand of God until He comes in POWER and glory if He comes through David's loins?[43] He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call Him Lord, saying,[44] The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?
The agents of the Pharisees along with the Herodians, the Sadducees, the Scribes, and now the Pharisees have all gotten their "clocks cleaned" when they confronted the wisdom and truth of the Living Word of God. In fact, they all looked pretty silly and inept in the eyes of the multitudes who witnessed them going down in flames.[45] If David then call him Lord, how is He his son?[46] And no man was able to answer Him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask Him any more questions.
By the way, the answer to the question Christ posed to the Pharisees is actually contained in the 110th Psalm. Let us go there and learn what our Father has to say!
Jesus Christ would come to this earth and be born of the virgin Mary whose genealogy through her father Heli (Joseph's father "as was supposed", i.e. his father in law) is given in Luke 3 documenting that she stemmed from David's loins (vs. 31)! But you see, Christ's Father was not Joseph or even David, but rather the Eternal One, God the Father.Psalm 110:1-7
A Psalm of David.
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
We will discuss this more in verse 4.
This speaks of the second advent when Christ shall come and "rule" in the midst of His enemies who shall all bow their knees before Him.[2] The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
The "day of His POWER" is His glorious return as King of kings and Lord of lords which occurs at the sound of the 7th Trump. The next verse contains the key to the question Christ asked the Pharisees.[3] Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
"The LORD has sworn" means that He has made His promise and confirmed His covenant concerning the "Seed", the Savior, Messiah, the One who would come and bring salvation, and He will not repent, meaning He will not change His sworn oath! But what is this sworn oath, this promise that He would be a "priest forever after the order of Melchizedek?" To answer that one should first know that since Mary was Elizabeth's cousin, who was a pure blooded Levite, that Mary's mother was also a pure blooded Levite and therefore Jesus through His mother Mary was not only half of the tribe of Judah through David, the one through whom the royal kingship line descended, but He was also half of the tribe of Levi through Aaron, the one through whom the priest line descended. In other words, Jesus Christ qualified even in His lineage as King of kings and Lord of lords. How perfect the Word of God![4] The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for everafter the order of Melchizedek.
However, even though Christ came through Judah and Aaron, He was both King and High Priest after the order of Melchiszedek, whose name means "king of the righteousness" or "king of the just (ones)"! You "see", Melchizedek was both King of Salem (peace) and High Priest! He was the one to whom Abraham tithed, the one who had no father and mother, neither beginning of days, nor end of life... i.e. He was eternal because He was Jesus Christ. Paul goes into great detail concerning Mechizedek in chapters 5-7 of Hebrews and in Hebrews 7:3 he writes concerning Melchizedek as one who was, "Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually."
In other words, though the entire Levitical priesthood was a blessed but temporal priesthood of mortal men who would come through the loins of Abraham, the heir of the unbreakable promise (of the seed) and blessings of God (i.e. Christ would come through the loins of Abraham), Abraham was subject to the King of the Zadok and King of Peace, Melchisedec! The reality is, Christ was Melchizedek! Read John 8:56-58 where Christ addressed the Pharisees and said, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. [57] Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? [58] Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM." The point is, Messiah was the Son whose Father was the Eternal God, and though He would come in the flesh through the loins of David, David was able in spirit to call that Eternal One, Lord!
That may be a little deep for those who have subsisted on milk their entire Christian lives and thus are not schooled by the schoolmaster, i.e. founded in the knowledge of the law and the prophets. Paul addresses this problem in Hebrews 5:11-14 and admonishes those who should be able to teach after so many years of going to church but who have remained "spiritual babies" and are unskillful in the Word of God. Take heed!
The "cup of His wrath" is soon filled up and the day of His wrath against the ungodly, when He pours that cup out, is drawing ever so near![5] The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath.
At the sound of the 7th Trump He shall come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat (Yahveh Judges) and judge all nations. Joel 3:11-12 "Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD. [12] Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about."[6] He shall judge among the heathen, He shall fill the places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries.
What a glorious time it will be for those who love and serve the Lord God with all their hearts and all their souls and who love their neighbors as themselves.[7] He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall He lift up the head.
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