Do Not Worry

“But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.” (Matthew 10:19-20 NKJV). For some reason this command is not found in standard lists of commandments of Jesus. This command is also found at Matthew 6:25, but in a different context. It reads: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25 ESV).

The context in Matthew 10 is coming persecution, while in Matthew 6 it is about daily living. The one we think about the most here in the west relates to daily living, simply because we don't currently live under persecution. That experience may be closer than we think and should be considered.

In Matthew 10, Jesus speaks of us as sheep being sent out in the midst of wolves. This illustration and the details Jesus gives about what will happen is clearly understood as it is being experienced in countries of persecution. There the wolves, the evil men, the pawns of darkness, will bring us before those in authority, usually with false charges. Family members may oppose us as well as others. Sheep in the midst of wolves describes suffering, even death for the sheep.

In Matthew 6, Jesus appears to be speaking to those living in poverty who are anxious about having what they need for daily living. This is a common experience by many who live in countries of persecution, under unstable social conditions, or times of severe environmental conditions. There are many things that are related to daily living that seem to stimulate us to worry from time to time.

Following both examples, Jesus gives reasons why we should not be anxious or worry. To read those reasons please see Matthew 6:25 – 33 and Matthew 10:16 – 22. In addition to those suggestions, we should think about what Paul wrote in Philippians 4:6 – 7 (ESV): “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 ESV). Verse 6 describes what we are to do when we feel anxious and verse 7 gives the benefits. For further information on this, please follow this link to a previous study.

Prayer

Father, worry seems to be an emotion that reveals our apparent inability to cope with something. These verses remind us not to remain in that state, but instead remember that you love us and will care for us and that we should come to you and with thanksgiving we should share what we are experiencing. Help us stay focused on you and not on the situation that is troubling us so that we may enjoy your peace and hope in the midst of trouble.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Despise Not the Little Ones

“Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.” (Matthew 18:10 NLT). In order to understand this command, we need to understand the context of “these little ones”. Going back to verse 1, we find the disciples asking Jesus who was the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Using a child as an example, Jesus explains that whoever humbles himself like a believing child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. This, I believe, establishes the context of childlike faith.

Looking at the verses that follow verse 10, we have the parable of the lost sheep, but what is a lost sheep and how might they relate to these little ones that we are not to despise or look down on? Everyone may not agree with me at this point, but a lost sheep is a person the Father has chosen for salvation and is yet to be born spiritually. A lost sheep is one who has been spiritually conceived by God and is in their spiritual gestation period, growing in spiritual awareness to the point where they are ready to be born spiritually.

These little ones are the lost sheep we are commanded to go into all the world and find and make disciples of. They are of little faith and need our help in becoming spiritually mature. We are not to despise them for their immaturity, but we are to encourage their spiritual growth. Special care for the health of a child before and after physical birth is necessary as it is for spiritual birth. Heaven waits with anticipation for these little ones, these lost sheep, to be found and nourished to the point of spiritual birth.

Prayer

Father, when the context of a verse like this one is seriously considered, an interpretation may be quite different than first expected. If we are great in the kingdom of heaven we will be humble servants, seeking out these little ones in faith to bring into fellowship with spiritually born believers. We are not to despise them, but patiently provide a nourishing environment to stimulate spiritual growth. Father, how focused we have become on our own wants and thus fail to meet the needs of these little ones. Father, have mercy on us.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Deny Yourself

“And he said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?”” (Luke 9:23-25 ESV). We may say we are followers of Jesus, but does our lifestyle support that claim? What does Jesus expect from those who follow him? He gives three things we should do if we decide to come after him. First, we are to deny living for self and humbly submit our will to God. We are to live out the Lord’s prayer, which says, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We are to be as committed as Jesus was when he prayed in the garden and said to his Father, “Not my will but yours be done and then he willingly went to the cross to die for us. We are to be willing to step aside from our rights and be willing to be a sacrifice for the sake of the gospel and the needs of others.

Second, we are to take up our cross daily. The cross is not a symbol of a burden we are to carry; it is a symbol of death by the most painful and humiliating means humans could devise. To carry the cross is to carry your own execution device among those who ridicule you for your belief. We are to be willing to die too self and even to die physical in order to follow Jesus? Jesus made this point clear when he said, “whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. We see this being lived out daily in countries of persecution where believers are suffering and even dying for their faith.

Third, we are to follow Jesus. At the time when Jesus said, “Follow me”, he was inviting them to stay with him as he taught and traveled from place to place. In this way they could listen to him and watch how he lived and learn how to live as one of God’s children. Today we have the Scriptures from which we can learn about him and then as believers. We are to take his yoke and as we walk and work with him we are to learn from him. To do this we are to be crucified with Christ and allow him to live in and through us. For me to follow Jesus at a particular time in my life required me to spend time with him ministering in China.

Prayer

Father, following Jesus has been quite an adventure as it has taken me to different parts of the world to minister and to learn about people there. To follow him I had to let go of certain desires and even do some things I didn't want to do, but I learned from doing them. Today as I follow him, he has taken me in to social media to write Bible studies, providing a witness for him to readers in a surprising number of countries. Following Jesus comes with restraints, but through those restraints I find a different kind of freedom in a life of purpose, meaning and value. Father, thank you for choosing me and giving me to Jesus to become like him.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Choose the Narrow Way

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matthew 7:13-14 ESV). This command relates to our salvation. When we are born physically we are by default on the way that leads to destruction and unless we obey this command and enter by the narrow gate we will continue on to eternal destruction.

A verse that adds meaning is: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 ESV). In Romans 3:23, Paul tells us that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and the wage of that sin death. We are born spiritually dead and as we live out life we continue to sin until we die physically, but while we are physically alive we have the opportunity to enter by the narrow gate, which is Jesus Christ, and be born spiritually and receive eternal life.

In countries of persecution, that choice could result in great hardship, even death. The way that leads to life is hard and those who find it are few. Here in the west very little is said about the Christian life being difficult. Here salvation is seen by many as a ticket to heaven and a life of safety, security and comfort here on earth. An emphasis is not made that as new creatures in Christ we have an assignment to carry out. As members of the kingdom of God, we have kingdom work to do, part of which is to go and make disciples. We are to pick up our cross daily and remember that by faith we have been crucified with Jesus Christ and we are to allow him to live his life in and through us (Galatians 2:20).

Prayer

Father, thank you that through Jesus Christ you have provided a way of salvation. It is given as a free gift, which we must accept if we are to obey the command to enter through the narrow gate. It is a gift that comes with responsibility and as your children we can expect times of discipline as you develop a Christ like character in us. Yes, the gate is narrow and the way is hard, but Father, the benefits are more than worth the hardship. Thank you for the gift of salvation.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Bring in the Poor

“He said also to the man who had invited him, "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."” (Luke 14:12-14 ESV). The command before us today is to bring in the poor.

I believe the implication of this command goes beyond the context of our verses of who to invite to dinner or a banquet, but to who we become involved with and for what reason. An interesting thought that just came to mind is, “Don't do for others what they can do for you, but do for others what that they can’t do for you.” This brings to mind an event that occurs each year that is a very difficult time for me; that event is Christmas. The practice of giving gifts to each other is the same idea as inviting to dinner those who will invite you back. That is not truly giving but an exchange. As I watch people do it and see their reactions I have to force myself to remain during this time of celebration because my heart is breaking for those who are suffering because of evil and have such great needs. This exchange of gifts will become extreme when the two witnesses die and the world rejoices (Revelation 11:7 – 10).

The emphasis of this command is to reach out to those in need who cannot repay you; to establish a relationship with them for the purpose of encouraging an interest in spiritual things. Because of our sinful nature we tend to look out for our own interest and fail to give adequate attention to the interest of others (Philippians 2:4).

Prayer

Father, as I wrote about this command I was reminded of the tendency we have of wanting to identify with or associate with those who are equal or better off than we are for the purpose of how we might benefit from them. This command is a reminder that life is not about ourselves but about Jesus Christ and others. As believers we have been given the assignment of searching for lost sheep and making disciples out of them.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Beware of Leaven

“Jesus said to them, "Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."” (Matthew 16:6 ESV). The command from this verse is to watch and beware of something that leaven represents. Normally we think of leaven as a substance like yeast that is added to dough to make it ferment and rise. That is what the disciples thought, but Jesus had a different meaning in mind. He was thinking of a pervasive influence that would modify one’s behavior negatively.  With the emphasis on watch and beware, one realizes the influence by the Pharisees and Sadducees was inclined toward evil. Looking at the last verse of this section that our verse is from, verse 12, we see that Jesus was referring to the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

The application of this command for us is that we are to carefully evaluate what we hear and determine if it is really true so as to not be led astray. If it is true it will encourage freedom, otherwise it will lead us toward bondage. Consider the following verses: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.” (1 John 4:1-3 ESV). In addition to this test we need to determine if there is any conflict of the message with Scripture.

Prayer

Father, today we seem to be willing to accept what we hear if we find it agreeable to our thinking. Even Christians are becoming a standard to which a message is evaluated, not truth as found in the Scriptures. As we drift away from Jesus, the source of truth, we drift away from an interest in truth and the ability of discern right and wrong. Father, you provided us with salvation, but with it came the handbook of life. We need to spend more time learning how to live by the handbook if we are to obey this command.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.

Beware of False Prophets

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?” (Matthew 7:15-16 ESV). This command, “Beware of False Prophets”, is found in a lengthy teaching session called “The Sermon on the Mount”, which begins in chapter 5 verse 3 and comes from a section titled “A Tree and Its Fruit”.

This command is a warning about a danger that could harm us and the context provides information about recognizing that danger. The danger is from people who present themselves as believers, but are not. These people are referred to as false prophets dressed up to look like sheep, but inside they are ravenous wolves determined to destroy you. They are workers of the evil one, determined to destroy the church through false teaching or as we see today, they gather information on who the real sheep are, where they live and what Christian materials they have for the purpose of a future arrest or some form of persecution.

These wolves can be recognized by their fruit. The example given is the ability to know a tree by its fruit. Inspection of the fruit determines the kind of tree and its health. One of the best test available is found in Galatians 5:22 – 23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” If the fruit is good it will display these characteristics. These characteristics must, however, be inspected to be sure they are genuine and not fake, otherwise they are only sheep clothing and not heart qualifies and the person is actually your enemy.

Prayer

Father, it appears possible that there are people who think they are sheep but are not. These people speak the Christian language and even do Christian work, but they are not born again. It seems that the intent of these people is not to deceive others, as are those labeled above as wolves, but they themselves are deceived. Their danger is their emphasis on religion and not relationship with Jesus, which allows impunity from the world to creep into our churches causing unhealthy conditions that we see in the western church. Father, we need your help in overcoming this.

See "The Commands of Jesus" Index to view other commands.