Category Archives: Suffering / Adversity

Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Grace / Forgiveness, Heaven and Hell, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Love, Merciful, Mockers, Praise / Worship / Glorify God, Suffering / Adversity, Wickedness / Evil

No Greater Act of Love

The dreadful treatment that Jesus received up to and including dying on the cross gives us insight into what we deserve for our wrong behaviors and attitudes. He deserved no such treatment. Jesus lived without sin, in perfect obedience to God. God willingly chose to become man in the person of Jesus Christ and to suffer and die for our sins. There is no greater and more clear act of love than to take our punishment in our place. Picture yourself going through this suffering and death instead of Jesus… what would it be like? Then praise God for showing us love, grace, and mercy in taking our punishment for us.

Matthew 27:27-56

Jesus Is Mocked

      27Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort around Him. 28They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. 29And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30They spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head. 31After they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.

      32As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they pressed into service to bear His cross.

The Crucifixion

      33And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a Skull, 34they gave Him wine to drink mixed with gall; and after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink.

      35And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots. 36And sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. 37And above His head they put up the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

      38At that time two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left. 39And those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads 40and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, 42“He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. 43“HE TRUSTS IN GOD; LET GOD RESCUE Him now, IF HE DELIGHTS IN HIM; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44The robbers who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him with the same words.

      45Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. 46About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” 47And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink. 49But the rest of them said, “Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him.” 50And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. 51And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. 52The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many. 54Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

      55Many women were there looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee while ministering to Him. 56Among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

There are consequences for our sin, for our wrong behaviors and attitudes. The wages of sin are death, but God offers us mercy and grace through Jesus Christ.

Romans 6:23 23For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God offers mercy in that He will withhold from us the punishment we deserve if we accept the lordship of Jesus Christ. God offers grace in His offer of eternal life and forgiveness, which we do not deserve. God shows us love by paying accepting upon Himself the punishment we deserve. The consequences of sin had to be dealt with. They could not be ignored.  Jesus suffered for us.

We see also the wicked, who mock and scorn Jesus and those who follow Him. They reject and rebel against God. Ultimately, all shall recognize Jesus as Lord, but for those who reject Him throughout their lives on earth, it will be too late to accept His offer of forgiveness when they stand before Him after they die.

Romans 14:11-12

11For it is written,
“AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME,
AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD.”

12So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, False Prophets / Teachers, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Love, Obeying God, Suffering / Adversity, Wickedness / Evil

Profiles in Humanity – Jesus’ Trial Before Pilate

No greater demonstration of love has the world ever seen than that of God humbling Himself to become man in the person of Jesus Christ and then voluntarily suffering and dying for our sins on the cross. We walk with Jesus on this journey in Matthew 27:11-26, as we see Him brought before Pilate for judgment. Pilate recognizes His innocence, but executes Him anyway trying not to take any accountability for it. The people are sheep, easily led astray by religious leaders to seek the release of a notorious prisoner and call for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, who was innocent. Jesus allows it and does not try to defend Himself despite personal pain and suffering, for He is walking in God’s will.

Jesus before Pilate

      11Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.” 12And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer. 13Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” 14And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.

      15Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. 17So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18For he knew that because of envy they had handed Him over.

      19While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” 20But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. 21But the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Crucify Him!” 23And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”

      24When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” 25And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” 26Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

We see several profiles that are worth comparing. We can learn from each.

Jesus is the perfect picture of a righteous man, obeying God even when it results in suffering. He sought and now follows God’s will for His life. He endures trials to serve our almighty God.

The chief priests and elders are relentless in their selfish desire to maintain power and execute Jesus out of sheer jealousy and fear of losing their earthly power and prestige. They have witnessed Jesus’ earthly ministry complete with many miracles. They have heard Him teach properly and with authority. Their faith tells them to prepare for such a Messiah as Jesus, but there is never even an indication in scripture that they seek God’s confirmation for whether or not Jesus is Messiah, Son of God. They are more often seen plotting and scheming, trying  to manipulate the people for their personal gain.

The people are weak… sheep… easily manipulated by those they perceive as their leaders. They do not recognize false prophets and teachers. They appear ignorant of scripture and unable or unwilling to test their religious leaders and hold them accountable to the word of God. They seem blindly to rely on what they are told, without testing it against God’s word. The choice between Jesus and Barabbas should be easy and obvious for a righteous people to make, even if they do not know the scriptures. They are easy prey to be led astray and away from the narrow path that leads to God.

Finally, we come to Pilate. Despite his efforts to symbolically “wash his hands” of guilt, he stands as guilty as any. He knowingly crucified an innocent man… knowing whom Jesus claimed to be and with no claim to deny it. Pilate even understood the motivation for why Jesus was accused. Pilate chose based on ease of appeasing the crowds rather than doing what was right. He is accountable. There is no middle ground. We are either with Jesus or we are against Him.

Matthew 12:30 30“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters. [also Luke 11:23]

Revelation 3:15-16  15‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.

Consider each of these profiles and how they may apply in your life, or the lives of those around you. Prepare now to stand for God even when no one else will. Avoid being easily led astray. Study God’s word daily. Come humbly before Him in prayer daily. Submit your life to Jesus Christ today!

Get started by learning some core teachings:

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Repenting from Sin

Did Judas Repent For Betraying Jesus?

Matthew 27:1-10 documents the guilt and regret that Judas experienced after betraying Jesus. He could not handle it and ultimately committed suicide. Let us take this opportunity to explore what some believe is evidence of Judas repenting from his sin and betrayal.  This is indeed an important lesson in that all of us have sinned and done wrong. All of us fall short of the glory of God and are faced with how to respond to that reality.

      1Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death; 2and they bound Him, and led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate the governor.

      3Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? See to that yourself!” 5And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself. 6The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the temple treasury, since it is the price of blood.” 7And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers. 8For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9Then that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “AND THEY TOOK THE THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER, THE PRICE OF THE ONE WHOSE PRICE HAD BEEN SET BY THE SONS OF ISRAEL; 10AND THEY GAVE THEM FOR THE POTTER’S FIELD, AS THE LORD DIRECTED ME.”

Some people get confused and want to believe that because Judas killed himself, it indicates a repentant heart and he was reconciled to God. This is a misunderstanding of repentance. Scripture gives no evidence of Judas repenting from his betrayal of Jesus. Judas simply felt guilt and could not handle it. He committed suicide. This is reminiscent of Cain’s response when confronted by God for murdering Able. Cain never admitted he was wrong, he never asked forgiveness, he never changed his behavior to follow and obey God… he simply could not handle the consequences of his wrong doing. Cain did not turn away from his wrong doing toward God (repentance), he regretted getting punished.

Genesis 4:9-13       9Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” 10He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to Me from the ground. 11“Now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12“When you cultivate the ground, it will no longer yield its strength to you; you will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth.” 13Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is too great to bear!

One of the greatest examples of repentance involves Saul (later known as Paul). He was passionately killing Christians and after a dramatic encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, Paul does not kill himself, but rather turns from wrong behavior to right behavior and spends the rest of his life passionately obeying Jesus Christ and going about God’s work spreading the gospel… enduring many hardships along the way for the sake of Christ.

Acts 9:17-22  17So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; 19and he took food and was strengthened. Now for several days he was with the disciples who were at Damascus, 20and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” 21All those hearing him continued to be amazed, and were saying, “Is this not he who in Jerusalem destroyed those who called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” 22But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ.

Indeed, Saul truly repented… turned away from his wrong behavior. He asked forgiveness from Jesus and submitted the rest of his life to the work of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. Saul was forgiven and reconciled with God.

For all of us who have sinned and made mistakes… and that is all of us… we must understand how to response to the gracious offer of forgiveness offered by Jesus Christ.

Romans 3:23  23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

We must admit we have done wrong, have sinned, and cannot save ourselves. We must believe in our heart that Jesus died, was buried, and rose again so our sins could be forgiven and by accepting Him as Lord of our life we can become a born again Christian. . We must confess Jesus as Lord of our life and follow Him.

Romans 10:9-10 9that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

Do you want to be forgiven for all that you have done wrong? Are you ready to change your life and follow Jesus as your leader? Pray with us, but pray genuinely with your heart because it is not about the specific words but the condition of the heart and submission to God.

Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus Christ. I confess that Jesus is Lord. I believe in my heart that you raised Him from the dead. Come into my heart Jesus, and be Lord over my life. Thank you God for saving me.

If you made this decision today, we encourage you to reach out to us or other Christians so that we can welcome you into the body of Christ as well as pray for you and provide more information and encouragement for your life changing decision. You can reach us through our Contact Us page.

This is not all there is! This is but the beginning… the doorway. Once you pass through this doorway you submit your whole life to Christ. It requires a combination of Intellect (knowing God), Emotion (loving God and fearing God), and Will (choosing to do His will instead of our own). It is an ongoing decision in our lives that starts us on a journey to know God more intimately and to obey Him more completely. It requires study and prayer and action. It is a journey we never finish in this life, but it transforms us along the way to be more and more like Jesus Christ.

Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Grace / Forgiveness, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Love, Salvation, Study the Word

Jesus Clearly Claims To Be Son Of God… Not Just A Prophet

For all those who claim that Jesus never said He was the Son of God… they stand in error. Billions of people around the world are misled by this deception and the Bible could not be clearer. Jesus could not have spoken more clearly than He did in Matthew 26:57-68. Jesus claimed to be the Son of God… thus He is not just a good teacher or prophet, but the Messiah.

Jesus before Caiaphas

      57Those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together. 58But Peter was following Him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and entered in, and sat down with the officers to see the outcome.

      59Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death. 60They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward, 61and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.’” 62The high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?” 63But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” 64Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”

      65Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy; 66what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!”

      67Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him, 68and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

The chief priests took quite some time going through witnesses to obtain false testimony about Jesus. Many false witnesses came, yet they did not find what they wanted as an excuse to kill Him. So, by contrast, we see that they clearly understood that Jesus claimed to be Son of God, which is to say God. For when they heard this, they stopped bringing witnesses and declared Jesus’ death sentence. They were being thorough and considered Jesus’ claim to be very clear.

Then they beat Him and spat on Him. Jesus experienced much physical and emotional pain up to death and the cross on our behalf. Jesus suffered this pain and humiliation for our sins… our mistakes.

Make no mistake… since Jesus clearly claimed to be Son of God. There are only three choices for us to rationally consider. Jesus is either God, as He says, or He is a liar or a madman. He cannot be a prophet or good teacher.

Billions are wrong about Jesus… Jewish people and Muslims along with others, deny that Jesus was God. They deny the very God who came to die for them and take their burden of sin for them. Many who identify as Christian dismiss what Jesus did too lightly as well. They continue in their sin, insisting on doing things their way instead of God’s way. There is only one way to God.

[John 14:6]  6Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

God humbled Himself to become man in the person of Jesus Christ. He did so to provide a path to forgiveness for all we have done wrong in our lives… all the wrong we have done against living according to His standard as revealed in the Biblical text. The Bible is incredibly relevant. It is the greatest story ever told!

Please do not “read the Bible it in a year”…  but rather study it for a lifetime and apply God’s word to your life. We invite you to study the Bible with us daily through our devotions via email, Facebook, Google Plus, or on our website Latest Devotions page. You can also look around our website (HearingFromJesus.org) for many more resources and tools to help you.

If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as God, as the one who personally came to take the punishment for your mistakes, I urge you to do so today. Do not delay. None of us knows how much time we have before we die and then it is too late to submit to Him and accept Him as Lord. Tell your family and friends about Him!

Learn more about accepting Jesus as leader of your life through The Message of the Cross.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Grace / Forgiveness, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Love, Obeying God, Salvation

Jesus Gave Himself Willingly

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Jesus demonstrates His great love for us in Matthew 26:47-56, in that He volunteered to suffer and die for our past mistakes so we could return to relationship with God. How many people can you imagine trusting God this much, volunteering for what was to happen… to save others? Most of us would be saying “I did not do anything wrong, so do not punish me.”

What great love God has for us! Jesus willingly suffered and died for our sins, so our past (and future) mistakes could be forgiven.

Jesus’ Betrayal and Arrest

      47While He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came up accompanied by a large crowd with swords and clubs, who came from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him.” 49Immediately Judas went to Jesus and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 50And Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him.

      51And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53“Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54“How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?”

      55At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. 56“But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled.

Surely each of us can think of things we wish we would not have done in our past. Jesus died so we could be forgiven of these things and be reconciled with God. Jesus could clearly have defended Himself with even a thought… calling upon a host of angels to protect Him. He did not. He actually directed the one who did defend Him with a sword to put it away. From Luke 22 we see even more amazing grace from our Lord, Jesus. Jesus healed the injured man… one of those who had come to take Him into custody!

 50And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51But Jesus answered and said, “Stop! No more of this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.

Jesus shows amazing love and grace for His people. To accept His offer of forgiveness, we must admit we have done wrong and turn away from our wrong behaviors and attitudes… those motivated by our personal selfish desires. We must turn toward Jesus, asking Him to forgive our past mistakes. We submit our lives to Jesus as our leader, our Lord, and we begin to live according to His example… in obedience to God.  Then we can be restored to close relationship with God and truly find joy in this world and the world to come!

If you have not made this personal decision to make Jesus the leader of your life, I urge you to do so today. Do not delay. (Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.) This most important decision is the beginning of a journey that lasts your entire lifetime… transforming you to be more like Jesus and less like your old self.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Obeying God, Prayer, Suffering / Adversity

Jesus Demonstrates Submission To God’s Will

Matthew 26:36-46 records a dramatic and pivotal moment in history that affects all of us who would seek Jesus as Lord and ask His forgiveness of our sins and past mistakes. Jesus knew about His coming capture, torture, death, burial and resurrection. He knew it would be hard and He would experience much suffering. Do not be deceived to think this was easy for Him. It was such as dramatic moment that Jesus says His soul was grieved to the point of death! But Jesus loved us enough to willingly take on the suffering for our sins to Himself so that we could be brought back to right relationship with God.

The Garden of Gethsemane

      36Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. 38Then He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”

      39And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” 40And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? 41“Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

      42He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done.” 43Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. 45Then He came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46“Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!”

In a moment of great pressure and decision, Jesus sought a quiet place to come before God and pray. Jesus brought with him his closest friends and disciples in Peter, James, and John. He opened up to them the burden He was carrying… He was grieved to the point of death and asked them to keep watch with Him.

How disappointing for Jesus that even His closest, most dedicated friends could not even stay awake and pray with Him. All of us face weakness in our flesh, but can find strength in the spirit of God… God will never fail us and will always be there for us when we seek Him.

Jesus even asked God to take away the cup of suffering, but in one of the most important decisions in history, Jesus submits to God’s will even when it meant extreme suffering for Him. This example is a powerful demonstration of faith and obedience for us to follow. Jesus understood that God’s plans are higher and better than what we can imagine in our human limitations.

Each of us should study this scripture carefully and repeatedly. Learn how Jesus shows us to come before God in prayer in the moment of our greatest struggles, tests, and sorrow. He asked for God’s help to take away the suffering, but submitted to God’s will to endure it as deemed best by God.

To learn more about effective prayer, study our teaching, Learning to Pray Effectively.

We also encourage you to visit our Prayer Request section of HearingFromJesus.org to submit a prayer request or pray alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Temptation/Tempting

Flee Temptation Rather Than Study And Consider It

Temptation. We have all faced it. The desire to do something we know we are not supposed to do. It comes from our own internal sin nature and Satan loves to tempt us to disobey the commands and instructions of God.

Let’s examine two examples in the Bible:

Genesis 3:1-7

    1Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! 5“For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.

Eve failed to run from temptation. She stayed with the conversation with Satan as he tempted her with lies and deception to disobey God’s warning. She should have left the area, but instead we see in verse 6 she studies the source of the temptation… the tree. She admires the fruit. Finally, she fails and eats the fruit. Then she tries and succeeds to bring Adam into the sin and rebellion with her. For a short while, very short… she likely felt good about her sin and enjoyed the fruit. Then there was lasting accountability and consequences for the act of rebellion and Adam and Eve were separated from God and Eden.

Genesis 39:6-18

 6So he [Potiphar] left everything he owned in Joseph’s charge; and with him there he did not concern himself with anything except the food which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. 7It came about after these events that his master’s wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” 8But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge. 9“There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” 10As she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her. 11Now it happened one day that he went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the household was there inside. 12She caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside. 13When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought in a Hebrew to us to make sport of us; he came in to me to lie with me, and I screamed. 15“When he heard that I raised my voice and screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled and went outside.” 16So she left his garment beside her until his master came home. 17Then she spoke to him with these words, “The Hebrew slave, whom you brought to us, came in to me to make sport of me; 18and as I raised my voice and screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.”

Joseph repeatedly looked to God’s commands to confirm his rejection of the seduction of Potiphar’s wife. Even when he was trapped by her wickedness, he ran. Surely he was tempted by the offer… but he chose the obedience to God over short term pleasure.  He suffered consequences including being lied about and put in prison… accused of the very thing he chose rightly not to do! But his relationship and standing with God remained strong. God had very important plans for Joseph including saving all of Egypt and his own family.

You can not  judge the outcome of your decisions based on short term happiness but rather against the unchanging compass which is God’s word. Your choices will be judged based on obeying or rebelling against God’s commands.  As Eve discovered, the temptations of sin (son = failing to follow God’s commands) are strong, but the pleasures do not last. The consequences in harming our relationship with God are real. Adam and Eve hid from God in their shame. Then they had to leave Eden. Joseph suffered after doing the right thing, but was used mightily by God later and was blessed indeed for his righteousness.

When you face temptation, ask the Holy Spirit for help and then remove yourself from temptation as Joseph did. Do not study and consider it closely like Eve.. Satan will try to help you rationalize why it is ok to do what you know is wrong. Perhaps in simple terms… if as child knows they are not to have a cookie before dinner, they do themselves a favor by leaving the room, rather than remaining there, staring at the cookie jar.   The solution is the same even if the problem is more “adult”. If someone is tempted toward adultery or stealing… get away from the situation and source of temptation immediately. Then turn to God in prayer and ask His help.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Consequences of Sin, Discerning / Judging, False Prophets / Teachers, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Hypocrisy, Prophecy, Traditions / Holidays

Hypocritical Religious Leaders Shut Off The Kingdom Of Heaven From People

Anyone who thinks they can just choose a pastor or church and follow them because they appear to have some authority or are backed by a large bureaucratic religious organization should take care to heed Jesus’ rebukes of the established religious authorities of the time of His earthly ministry. Clearly we are to seek out the word of God recorded in holy scripture, in the Bible, and use that to validate any teacher or pastor whom we follow. Many with appearance of legitimate authority lead themselves and others astray.  God’s instructions are too important not to study them for ourselves to confirm any meaning or application of scripture in our lives.

Matthew 23:13-34

     13“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14[“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]

      15“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

      16“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’ 17“You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? 18“And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19“You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? 20“Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. 21“And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. 22“And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

      23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24“You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

      25“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. 26“You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.

      27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28“So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

      29“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31“So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32“Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?

      34“Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city, 35so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36“Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation

At the beginning of Matthew 23, Jesus rebukes the religious leaders of the time and tells the people that they are all brothers with one Father, God. We are not to blindly follow other men, calling them father or rabbi. Beware of “organized religion” with layers of bureaucracy as it tends to incorporate doctrine and traditions of men and place them in higher importance or in distraction to the commands of God. God has already provided His instruction and we are each as individuals to study it and come to personal relationship with God through prayer. No man needs stand between us and God.

Will you follow traditions of men or commands of God? Will you study God’s word consistently and pray daily to grow in relationship with God so you can know the difference? Make the commitment today to study the Bible and pray daily as a starting point to your walk with Jesus as Lord.

We encourage you to review these core teachings as you get started or recommit yourself:

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Adultery / Sex Outside Marriage, Consequences of Sin, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Homosexual Behavior, Marriage

The Immoral Man Sins Against His Own Body

God’s design for sex is for it to be a wonderful and intimate part of a marriage between one man and one woman. It is as physical aspect of the two becoming one that helps to bring them together on more than just a physical act. It is a gift of pleasure from God to His people that helps a husband and wife to share a very personal relationship that is just between them, different from relationship with all others.

Sadly, though, those who are of the world rise up to defend sexual immorality instead of respecting God’s instruction. They twist scripture to do so… or often just reject scripture all together. They constantly change what is acceptable trying to always move farther from God’s word and embrace their own sin nature which seeks after the deceptions of Satan.  They proclaim sex outside marriage is good, they rationalize adultery, they cheer on homosexual marriage despite God’s clear condemnation, and they will not stop there. Once you disregard God’s clear and holy standard… there is no other logical stopping point. If we disregard God’s instruction, what is to say marriage or sex with children or animals is wrong… what is the absolute standard and on whose authority does it rest?

The truth is that all of these immoral practices that violate God’s clear commands are wrong and damaging to the people who commit them and to others. God’s instructions exist because He loves us and wants what is best for us.

1 Corinthians 6:13-20

13Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. 14Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! 16Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” 17But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 18Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. 19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

Romans 1:18-32

     18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 21For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.

      24Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. 25For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

      26For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.

      28And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

God loves us and set forth His instructions and commands to us because He wants what is best for us. He is guiding and protecting us … giving us freedom in His instructions rather than bondage to our sin nature.

God providing detailed instructions is not an over-controlling micro manager… no! God provides instruction as one who leads us through a minefield, carefully instructing us in the way we should go and the way we should not go so we may navigate it safely, without getting destroyed. In fact, He did not just provide a map, a written record, but rather actually became man to dwell among us and show us personally how to get through the minefield. Yes… God loves us that much!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Character of God, Consequences of Sin, Discerning / Judging, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Greed, Heaven and Hell, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Parables, Repenting from Sin, Salvation, Satan, Selfishness

Parable of the Vineyard Owner

Jesus is still teaching at the temple in Matthew 21:33-46. His audience is the chief priests, the Pharisees, and the Jewish people who actually came to the temple, those perhaps perceived as more righteous than the “sinners” who did not come to the temple.

33“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey. 34“When the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce. 35“The vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third. 36“Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them. 37“But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38“But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ 39“They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40“Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” 41They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.”

42Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,

‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone;
THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD,
AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?

43“Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. 44“And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”

45When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. 46When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people, because they considered Him to be a prophet.

Most of us read this story and immediately recognize that the vine-growers were greedy, selfish, and wicked … refusing to live up to their agreement and willing to kill others who represented the one with rightful claim on the land. They were the ones who rejected the agreement they had made previously. We recognize that the vineyard owner is in fact quite patient with the vine growers who rebel against him, giving them multiple warnings and chances to repent and live by their agreement. Ultimately we recognize that he is within his rights to destroy the vine  growers and rent the land to others. It is a very straightforward story.

However, do we take time to really understand what this means when we apply its meaning to our relationship with God?

The vineyard owner is God. The vine growers represent His people, in particular the rebellious chief priests and other religious leaders who after receiving the offer to be God’s chosen people, reject His ways insisting on ruling themselves. They reject, abuse, and kill His messengers… the prophets. Then, God comes down as Jesus Christ… the son of God… surely they will respect Him… not at all. They reject, abuse, and kill Him also. Now what do you think God will do?

The specifics of this parable refer to God’s chosen people, Israel, rejecting God and then God opening up His kingdom to the gentiles, but the principle of the story applies to each of us even today.

In His grace and out of His great love for each of us, God has made a way for us to be reconciled with Him through Jesus Christ. For those that genuinely accept that offer, it changes their life as they submit all of their life to Christ and live according to His instruction.

But to those who reject Him, they will be destroyed in Hell, by their own choice of rejecting and rebelling against Him. There is righteous judgment for our sin. The penalty is death. Jesus paid the price, but many insist on rejecting His offer and insist they pay the price themselves instead.  Do not be misled by the deception of Satan, who proclaims that there is no judgment, all are righteous, all will go to Heaven. Satan comes to deceive and destroy.

God is love, but God is also righteous, holy, and just. Sin represents rebellion against God and it is ugly. It requires strict punishment. Do not rationalize to accept sin as “not that bad”. How many of us would think it wise for parents to accept “a little rebellion” from their children without consequences? What we inherently know is that rebellion against our parental authority is bad, and if allowed to continue without consequences it will grow and grow into more rebellion. It must not, can not be tolerated.

Note that rebellion is a continuous refusal to obey, often intentional but it can also come out of ignorance of the rules and laziness in refusing to learn the rules that have been clearly provided.  This is different from making a mistake, repenting, and sinning no more. Mistakes can be forgiven. Continuous rebellion must be addressed.

Each of us should study God’s word to learn and understand how He wants us to live… to relate to him and other people… and then change our behaviors to do as He instructs or commands.

In what areas of your life are you refusing to submit to God? Why? Are you going to change that behavior or continue rebelling against God?

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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