Read and pray: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill." (Mt 5:17)
"THE GEHENNA OF FIRE IN THE KINGDOM (2)"
The kingdom will be very strict. Now I will say some frank and serious words. Two brothers or two sisters who are in discord cannot be together in the kingdom. In the coming kingdom, there will be only love and mercy; only those who love and show mercy to others will be able to enter the kingdom of heaven.
If I am involved in a dispute with a brother, and if the issue is not resolved in this age, then in the future, either both of us will be excluded from the kingdom, or only one of us will enter. It will not be possible for both to enter. It is impossible to have problems with one another and still reign at the same time in the future millennium.
In the kingdom, all Christians will be unanimous. There will be absolutely no barriers between two people. If today, while we are on earth, we have any friction with any brother or sister, if we have obstacles with any brother or sister, we must be careful.
It may happen that we enter and the other is excluded, or that the other enters and we are excluded, or that both of us are excluded. The Lord says that while you are with your brother on the way, you must reconcile with him. This means that while you and he are alive and before the Lord Jesus returns, you must reconcile with your brother.
The Lord will not tolerate two enemies complaining about each other in the kingdom. Today we can complain about others very easily; but such complaints will keep us, or others, or both, outside the kingdom.
It seems that today the church is very free, but it will not be like that on that day. "While you are with him on the way," says the Lord. If you die, if he dies, or if the Lord Jesus returns, that way will be over. Therefore, you must resolve the issue quickly, before the Lord returns and while you and he are on the way.
"So that the adversary does not hand you over to the judge," the judge is the Lord Jesus; "and the judge to the officer," the officer is the angel; "and you be thrown into prison." This clearly shows us that a brother who has offended another brother will suffer a very severe punishment.
If you study this passage carefully, you will see that the prison here is the Gehenna of fire in verse 22, because verse 23 begins with "therefore." The words of verse 23 onward explain the words of verse 22. Verse 22 says that anyone who calls his brother fool will be subject to the Gehenna of fire.
Verses 23 to 25 continue to say that those who do not reconcile with their brothers will be thrown into prison. Therefore, the prison in verse 25 is evidently the Gehenna of fire of verse 22.
It is clear that there is no possibility for a Christian to perish eternally; however, if a Christian has any sin of which he has not repented and confessed, which has not been forgiven, he will be subject to the Gehenna of fire.
Note how severe the Lord’s words are in verse 26: "Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last cent." There is a possibility of release if the person pays everything. In the coming age, there is still the possibility of forgiveness, but the person will not be able to leave until he has paid the last cent and put everything in order with his brother.
Verses 27 to 30 form another section. This section is similar to the previous one. "You have heard that it was said: You shall not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
The commandment in the Old Testament says that we should not commit adultery, but the commandment in the New Testament says that we cannot even have adulterous thoughts. Here, the word "woman," in the original language, refers to another man’s wife. If the woman were not another man’s wife, there would be no possibility of adultery, for adultery is marital unfaithfulness.
If she is not another man’s wife, it cannot be considered adultery; it is fornication. The Bible judges fornication, but not as severely as it judges adultery. Here it says that an adulterous thought is produced concerning another man’s wife.
Secondly, the meaning of the word "look," in the original language, is not as broad as our word "look." The word "look" in the original language places many people in this sin category, because it does not imply a casual glance, but an intentional look. Looking may be simply a quick, accidental glance at something on the street.
"Observe" is a better word, because to observe is an intentional look. Moreover, in the original language, the observing here is done with a specific purpose. We can translate it as: "anyone who observes a woman with impure intent."
What the Lord condemns are not the sudden thoughts that enter the mind. He is dealing with continuing to observe with impure intent after a sudden thought has entered. In other words, our sins do not reside in the flesh being incited by Satan giving us dirty thoughts. Our sins consist of additional observing after Satan has given us a sudden thought. This is adultery.
Sudden thoughts come from Satan. Observing comes from yourself. Sudden thoughts are temptations. Your observing is your acceptance of the temptations. We must know how to distinguish these two things.
Verse 29 says: "If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away." If your right eye leads you to observe, pluck it out and throw it away. "For it is better for you that one of your members perish, and not your whole body be thrown into Gehenna."
If lust is not removed, if sin is not dealt with, the person will be "thrown into Gehenna." Then verse 30 says: "And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away; for it is better for you that one of your members perish and not your whole body go into Gehenna." The Lord Jesus spoke these words to the disciples.
Christ told those who belonged to Him, whose righteousness must exceed that of the Pharisees and scribes (v. 20), that they had to deal with their sins. If they allowed sin to develop in them, although they would not perish eternally, there was the possibility that they could go to Gehenna. This is what the Lord shows us in the book of Matthew.
🌿 Enjoy more:
Hymn - "Father, Son, and Spirit, One in Three and Three in One"
No comments:
Post a Comment