Category Archives: Righteousness / Serving God

Did Jesus Really Claim to be God?

Most of us who accept Yeshua as Messiah already know the answer. He claimed to be Messiah, God in the flesh. Some who deny Christ as Messiah can not deny that He existed and walked on this earth. The evidence is too overwhelming. So instead, they claim that Yeshua was only a good teacher or a prophet. This can not be so, however, because Yeshua claimed to be Messiah.

If someone claims to be Messiah, there are three options…  he is crazy, he is a liar, or he is Messiah. Good teacher and prophet are not rational choices as they would not claim to be Messiah.

As a result of that logic, some then say that Yeshua never claimed to be Messiah. The truth is that there are many examples where He did so. In fact it is so obvious, that we could simply point out that this is fundamentally why the Pharisees wanted to kill Him. They understood who He claimed to be very clearly.

Matthew 11 provides one example where Yeshua claimed to be Messiah, in response to John’s (the Baptist) inquiry. These examples are good to understand so we can defend the truth of the gospel against common arguments that people use to draw people away from following Yeshua.

Matthew 11:1-6

John’s Questions

      1When Jesus had finished giving instructions to His twelve disciples, He departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.

      2Now when John, while imprisoned, heard of the works of Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3and said to Him, “Are You the Expected One, or shall we look for someone else?” 4Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: 5the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM6“And blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.”

Rather than me building out the background context and details myself, I will quote from a section or Barnes commentary, available at BibleHub.com. It is not that Barnes commentary is authoritative, but in this case it is well laid out and documented.

Excerpt from Barnes commentary on Matthew 11:

Matthew 11:3 And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?

Art thou he that should come? – That is, Art thou the Messiah, or the Christ? The Jews expected a Saviour. His coming had been long foretold, Genesis 49:10Isaiah 9:1-6Isaiah 11:1-5Isaiah 35:4-6Isaiah 53:1-12Daniel 9:24-27. See also John 6:14. Compare Deuteronomy 18:18-19. In common language, therefore, he was familiarly described as “he that was to come.” Luke adds here Luke 7:21, that at the time when the messengers came to him, Jesus “cured many of their infirmities, and plagues, and of evil spirits.” An answer was therefore ready to the inquiries of John.

Matthew 11:4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see:
Go and show John again … – Jesus referred them for an answer to these miracles. They were proof that he was the Messiah. Prophets had indeed performed miracles, but no prophet had performed so many, or any so important. Jesus, moreover, performed them “in his own name” and by his own power. Prophets had done it by the power of God. Jesus, therefore, performed the works which none but the Messiah could do, and John might easily infer that he was the Christ.

The poor have the gospel preached to them – It was predicted of the Messiah that he would preach good tidings to the meek Isaiah 61:1; or, as it is rendered in the New Testament, “He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor,” Luke 4:18. By this, therefore, also, John might infer that he was truly the Messiah. It adds to the force of this testimony that the “poor” have always been overlooked by Pharisees and philosophers. No sect of philosophers had condescended to notice them before Christ, and no system of religion had attempted to instruct them before the Christian religion. In all other schemes the poor have been passed by as unworthy of notice.

Matthew 11:6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

And blessed is he … – The word “offence” means a “stumbling-block.” See the notes at Matthew 5:29. This verse might be rendered, “Happy is he to whom I shall not prove a stumbling-block.” That is, happy is he who shall not take offence at my poverty and lowliness of life, so as to reject me and my doctrine. Happy is the one who can, notwithstanding that poverty and obscurity, see the evidence that I am the Messiah, and follow me. It is not improbable that John wished Jesus publicly to proclaim himself as the Christ, instead of seeking retirement. Jesus replied that he gave sufficient evidence of that by his works; that a man might discover it if he chose; and that he was blessed or happy who should appreciate that evidence and embrace him as the Christ, in spite of his humble manner of life.

Clearly, Yeshua claimed to be Messiah, and He referred to the Torah and writings of the prophets to convey that message.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Why Would Yahweh Comes to Ahab’s Defense?

Ahab was a wicked king over Israel. We read about it throughout several chapters in 1 Kings preceding 1 Kings 20. It is interesting that when war was upon Israel, the LORD granted them victory anyway. Why did He do that?

1 Kings 20

War with Aram

      1Now Ben-hadad king of Aram gathered all his army, and there were thirty-two kings with him, and horses and chariots. And he went up and besieged Samaria and fought against it. 2Then he sent messengers to the city to Ahab king of Israel and said to him, “Thus says Ben-hadad, 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your most beautiful wives and children are also mine.’” 4The king of Israel replied, “It is according to your word, my lord, O king; I am yours, and all that I have.” 5Then the messengers returned and said, “Thus says Ben-hadad, ‘Surely, I sent to you saying, “You shall give me your silver and your gold and your wives and your children,” 6but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and whatever is desirable in your eyes, they will take in their hand and carry away.’”

      7Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, “Please observe and see how this man is looking for trouble; for he sent to me for my wives and my children and my silver and my gold, and I did not refuse him.” 8All the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen or consent.” 9So he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, “Tell my lord the king, ‘All that you sent for to your servant at the first I will do, but this thing I cannot do.’” And the messengers departed and brought him word again. 10Ben-hadad sent to him and said, “May the gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samaria will suffice for handfuls for all the people who follow me.” 11Then the king of Israel replied, “Tell him, ‘Let not him who girds on his armor boast like him who takes it off.’” 12When Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking with the kings in the temporary shelters, he said to his servants, “Station yourselves.” So they stationed themselves against the city.

Ahab Victorious

      13Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’” 14Ahab said, “By whom?” So he said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘By the young men of the rulers of the provinces.’” Then he said, “Who shall begin the battle?” And he answered, “You.” 15Then he mustered the young men of the rulers of the provinces, and there were 232; and after them he mustered all the people, even all the sons of Israel, 7,000.

      16They went out at noon, while Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the temporary shelters with the thirty-two kings who helped him. 17The young men of the rulers of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out and they told him, saying, “Men have come out from Samaria.” 18Then he said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive.”

      19So these went out from the city, the young men of the rulers of the provinces, and the army which followed them. 20They killed each his man; and the Arameans fled and Israel pursued them, and Ben-hadad king of Aram escaped on a horse with horsemen. 21The king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots, and killed the Arameans with a great slaughter.

      22Then the prophet came near to the king of Israel and said to him, “Go, strengthen yourself and observe and see what you have to do; for at the turn of the year the king of Aram will come up against you.”

      23Now the servants of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the mountains, therefore they were stronger than we; but rather let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they. 24“Do this thing: remove the kings, each from his place, and put captains in their place, 25and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot. Then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they.” And he listened to their voice and did so.

Another Aramean War

      26At the turn of the year, Ben-hadad mustered the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight against Israel. 27The sons of Israel were mustered and were provisioned and went to meet them; and the sons of Israel camped before them like two little flocks of goats, but the Arameans filled the country. 28Then a man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because the Arameans have said, “The LORD is a god of the mountains, but He is not a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’” 29So they camped one over against the other seven days. And on the seventh day the battle was joined, and the sons of Israel killed of the Arameans 100,000 foot soldiers in one day. 30But the rest fled to Aphek into the city, and the wall fell on 27,000 men who were left. And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city into an inner chamber.

      31His servants said to him, “Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings, please let us put sackcloth on our loins and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will save your life.” 32So they girded sackcloth on their loins and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-hadad says, ‘Please let me live.’” And he said, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.” 33Now the men took this as an omen, and quickly catching his word said, “Your brother Ben-hadad.” Then he said, “Go, bring him.” Then Ben-hadad came out to him, and he took him up into the chariot. 34Ben-hadad said to him, “The cities which my father took from your father I will restore, and you shall make streets for yourself in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria.” Ahab said, “And I will let you go with this covenant.” So he made a covenant with him and let him go.

      35Now a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to another by the word of the LORD, “Please strike me.” But the man refused to strike him. 36Then he said to him, “Because you have not listened to the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as you have departed from me, a lion will kill you.” And as soon as he had departed from him a lion found him and killed him. 37Then he found another man and said, “Please strike me.” And the man struck him, wounding him. 38So the prophet departed and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes. 39As the king passed by, he cried to the king and said, “Your servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a man turned aside and brought a man to me and said, ‘Guard this man; if for any reason he is missing, then your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of silver.’ 40“While your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” And the king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself have decided it.” 41Then he hastily took the bandage away from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognized him that he was of the prophets. 42He said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have let go out of your hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.’” 43So the king of Israel went to his house sullen and vexed, and came to Samaria.

The LORD gave victory to the people of Israel for His own glory and honor. He wanted Ahab to know that He was the LORD. Consider the following verses:

    13Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’”

28Then a man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because the Arameans have said, “The LORD is a god of the mountains, but He is not a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’

I believe this is truly by the grace and patience of our Father that He continued to give such opportunity to Ahab. But even after these chances, Ahab chooses again the wrong path before the LORD. He compromises and makes a treaty with the Beh-hadad, when the LORD already gave him victory. I believe this reflects what is still a lack of faith in Ahab for the LORD. He keeps wanting to do things his own way instead of fully submitting to and relying on Yahweh.

God had set aside Ben-hadad for destruction. Ahab missed that and did things his own way.  Further, when the prophet who is sent to rebuke him confronts him with a parallel situation, Ahab basically has no mercy. He says the man has decided his own judgment, to be killed for letting a prisoner go. Then we see another example of the forgiveness we have for others being the same standard by which we are judged. The prophet declares that because Ahab took this position, it shall stand likewise as his own punishment. Ahab just can’t seem to get things right and that is because he does not have a submitted relationship with the LORD. He is always doing things his own way.  Never do we see Ahab come before the LORD asking forgiveness, even when he is confronted by the prophet directly. It seems obvious that Ahab must have believed in God, witnessing the victory, and not striking down prophets who come against him. However he does not appear to have submitted to the LORD.

There is a lot to learn from this scripture. God will defend His name and reveal Himself to His people. He wants to be in relationship with us, even after we mess up and disobey. We should seek His help and do things His way. There is nothing which God can not make happen, no matter what the odds may seem to be that stack against us. When we mess up, be humble, repent, and ask forgiveness. Ahab never did.

One more observation I have not called out yet, but will not develop fully here. Verses 35-36 may be troubling to some of us. A man refused to strike a prophet and was killed by a lion as a result. Ouch. It sounds harsh for sure. We can make a lot of rationalizations about why the man may not have wanted to strike the prophet, but ultimately the LORD arranged for the lion to kill the man and thus reinforced that his action was wrong to not obey the prophet. I take this one to be one of obedience to the LORD and His servants, especially if the prophet was well known and recognized. We do see a clue that this may have been the case as Ahab recognizes him. That is the whole point of getting struck and going in disguise in the first place.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

What Did Yeshua Tell His Disciples Before Sending Them Out?

What did Yeshua tell His disciples before sending them out? Some of this is directed specifically at the 12, and not everyone, and some of it applies to all of us still today.

Matthew 10:1-15

The Twelve Disciples; Instructions for Service

      1Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

      2Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him.

      5These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; 6but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7“And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. 9“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, 10or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. 11“And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. 12“As you enter the house, give it your greeting. 13“If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. 14“Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. 15“Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.

Clearly Yeshua has authority over unclean spirits and healing the sick. Take note these are two different afflictions. The are mentioned separately. In this scripture, He gave authority over this to the twelve, not to all followers for all times.

Yeshua instructed the twelve to only go to the lost sheep of Israel and not to the Gentiles. We receive instruction further on in the Bible where we are told to go to all the nations, so for us, we know to go to everyone (Matthew 28:19). Yeshua went first to the lost sheep of Israel. When the message was rejected there, he went out to others (Matthew 22:1-14).

There was clear instruction to give freely what you have received from God freely. They were not supposed to charge for healing and casting out demons. They were instructed not to acquire wealth on this mission. However there is also a note that they should not bring extra provisions as the “worker is worthy of his support”. There was an expectation that the people being brought the good news would support them as messengers from Yahweh.  This one is interesting to split how to apply today generally vs. specifically to the twelve. I think it is clear those with healing power are not to charge others for it and make money off it. It also seems reasonable to accept basic support from those to whom you are preaching the message of the gospel. Of course, we know from elsewhere in scripture that Paul did not accept money to support him (at least not in Corinth) while on his missionary journeys (1 Corinthians 9:8-14). Paul reinforces that the LORD said that one who proclaims the gospel can make their living from doing so, but also chose not to personally because he thought it would hinder the gospel, perhaps specific to the situation in Corinth. I think this applies to us today as well as to the twelve. However, the emphasis is that they should not get wealthy by healing. It also implies to me that there is an expectation that one who preaches the gospel is not accumulating great wealth by doing so, but simply making a living… and some may choose even to “self fund” by having a day job as similar to Paul.

Lastly, we see that where the messengers are not received, they are to move on. This applies still to us today. We are not to simply stay at one place trying to force people to convert. Generally speaking we are to shake the dust from our sandals and move on to the next village, which may receive us. Many can get consumed trying to force a single “conversion” of someone. However, their efforts may be more effective if they moved on to others who are prepared to receive the message. Of course, if Yahweh directs you to stay in one tough situation where the message is directed, then do so.

Please do not overlook the faith and courage that was required of the twelve as they went out and took nothing extra and trusted in the instructions of the LORD to guide and in the people who received them to provide. Imagine yourself in that position to get a better feeling for what they experienced.

Prayerfully reflect on the instructions Yeshua gave His disciples before sending them out and write down some key ways in which it affects you in your life. Ask the Father to help you in how to apply it to your life today.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.