Read At Your Own Risk!

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately. Most of the reading I’m doing is from authors who are quite controversial and not the most popular characters to reach the Christian audience. But the subjects are wonderfully intriguing and lead the reader to search deeper.

One book I’ve been reading was a recent gift from a friend in Texas. The book’s title is “The Gift of the Jews.” Another great book that was given to me in the same week by another friend is titled “Misquoting Jesus.” These are not books that I would recommend to the average fundamentalist or anyone of a less than completely stable faith. Frankly, the two books together are a recipe for creating an atheist at worst and an agnostic at best. At the very least, they will create confusion and frustration for the average Christian.

“The Gift of the Jews” was written in the late 1990’s by Thomas Cahill and it is the history of Abraham’s ancestors who were called the Sumerians. The Sumerians were fantastic story tellers who developed their stories over literal centuries until they would reach perfection. The story of Gilgamesh is a story that began even before the Sumerians and was told over millennia.

The story of Gilgamesh included a “Tree of Life” that was protected by a serpent, a man created from a ball of clay, and a great ritual ladder that, if someone were to climb it and reach the heavens, they would become a god. There was also the belief that each individual had an angel that tended to his or her needs after a difficult time in life. The prehistoric ancestors of Abraham would pass these stories verbally long before writing was ever invented, perfecting them with each generation. And the stories are preserved in stone, the first form of writing, which archeologists and scholars use today to piece the stories together.

These are all very fascinating findings and quite faith shaking. As I said before, these are not books for anyone who wants his or her beliefs to remain unchallenged. Yet, somehow, my faith is only strengthened by the study. And I don’t mean in a rebellious way, but in a healthy kind of peaceful way that gives me the ability to say, "So what? Does it matter if the stories belong strictly to Israel or if Israel, the descendants of these great story tellers, held on to these fantastic tales and used them to build and sustain a faith in God throughout the centuries?

For me, it doesn’t give me cause to give up faith, but a hunger for more of how we have come to believe what we believe.

Forever learning, wherever it takes me,
Johnny

Grace Is A Gift From God, Not From the New Testament

Many Christians believe that God’s grace was instituted by the coming of the Messiah. It’s often understood that the old Covenant was a covenant of law, while the new Covenant is a covenant of grace.

Jews in Jesus day are thought to have been “saved-by-works” hypocrites who believe even today that they have to earn their way into God’s grace, while the Christian has the knowledge that grace is a free gift from God. We’ve heard sermon after sermon where we are taught that the Jews have missed the boat because they believe that they are saved by the “Law.” This is not the case at all.

Orthodox Jews do not believe that they are saved by the Torah. They believe that they are privileged to be the people who have received a special covenant that they are honored to practice.

When God gave the 613 instructions to Moses at Mt. Sinai, He gave them to Israel for their benefit. His intent was to allow them, through their obedience, to experience His grace as the commandments gave them the ability to experience fulfilling lives. Just as we practice certain habits like exercising, saving money, or changing the oil in our car to experience the benefits of such habits, the instructions of God for Israel were considered the wisdom of God that provided a better life for the individual and the community.

The word “grace” comes from the Hebrew word hesed and it means "beauty" or "favor." Unfortunately, most English translations translated hesed as "mercy," which causes the Hebrew Bible to appear as if there is much less grace in the old Covenant than in the new Covenant. Hesed, for the Jew, could not be bought or earned, but was the result of godly living.

How many people waste their money and still experience the blessings of wise investing? How many wives allow their husband to do nothing but watch T.V. and eat ice-cream and have a wonderful productive marriage? What kind of company allows their employees to come to work whenever they want and still benefits from a well-run organization? Have you ever known of a car that never has an oil change or a tune-up yet even after 200,000 miles, still runs like new?

Grace isn’t a ticket out of hell; it can’t be bought or earned. Grace is the benefit that is experienced by the obedient follower who lives according to the ways of God.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Honor Your Parents

My wife and I spent four days away from home this week. While we were gone, my wife’s parents watched our four children. When we returned, we received the wonderful privilege of having been honored by our children. Their grandparents told us that they were incredibly respectful and polite, and they did all that they were supposed to do while we were gone.

God tells us in the fifth commandment to honor our parents. This is a command that we could all do well to revisit as we have become a society where mothers and fathers are more apt to honor their children than then other way around.

In our world today, Mothers and fathers live to make their children smile. This is not a biblical model, but one that causes parents to be treated like bank accounts, sources of entertainment funding, and free trips to wherever rather than the wisdom granters and life teachers that they are created to be.

The Western world has done much to turn the ideals of parenting upside down and this is to the detriment of our own futures. Parents are not called to make their children happy; they are called to train their children to honor the will of God.

It’s also important to remember that “children” does not only mean “little kids.” Children are to honor their parents with their behavior and choices even as they become parents themselves.

Much of what gets us into trouble in life could be prevented if we would focus more on the command to honor our parents. Think of every sin and every crime and within them you will see that obeying the command to honor one's parents would have prevented it. How many prisoners would never have spent one day in jail had they chosen to honor their parents? With that said, I should clarify that honoring parents does not mean doing everything they say or making them happy even if it requires an immoral act. Parents are also to live according to the will and instructions of God as parents.

There is no greater way to honor God than to honor our parents. By honoring our parents, we do honor God.

I would add, after John's comments, that Mother and Father refers to the aged who should be honored rather than treated like they no longer have value. Mother and father can also be a reference to "wisdom" and "God."

In His dust,
Johnny

Interperter of Tongues

The early Church was a branch of first century Judaism. Both the synagogue and the early Church were well organized and had similar roles, titles, and positions for those who had specific responsibilities in a perspective congregation.

One such position was that of the meturganim (interpreter). A meturganim was a person who was very knowledgeable in the language of Hebrew, including the Hebrew Scriptures, and was also fluent in the common language, such as Greek or Aramaic, of the people in a particular synagogue. He would stand by the person who was reading the Hebrew Torah or teaching in the house of study, and after the reader would speak the Hebrew words directly into the ear of the interpreter, the interpreter would turn and tell the congregation, in their own language, what was read or taught.

This is the context of Jesus’ words in Matthew 10:27: “What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs.”

Understanding that the Scriptures of the Hebraic Jews were written in Hebrew helps us to understand Paul’s insistence upon having a meturganim when reading in a congregation where they did not understand Hebrew. Without an interpreter, “…you will just be speaking into the air” (1 Cor 14:9b).

Forever learning,
Johnny

Let Go And Let Man

People will often resort to the quickest way to get from one point to another, which is not a straight line. The shortest way to get from one point to another is by taking the path of least resistance.

Anytime a person, including myself, gets out of control, it’s because we don’t know how to handle the situation that we are in. Often parents like me will find themselves in situations of discipline where we resort to screaming like maniacs or spanking a child, not because we have great wisdom, but because, at that moment, we don’t have a clue what we should do.

When Jesus introduced the Kingdom, he did it by show and tell, and then he said, “Take over.” In fact, he gave Peter the keys (Matthew 16:19). Peter was put in charge of the Kingdom. Jesus didn’t say, “Peter, here are the keys. You are in charge, but I’m in control.” Peter was charged with leading the Kingdom of Heaven (God's children).

Peter wasn't put in charge the same way we put our six-year-old in charge of cleaning her room. Peter was in charge like the President of the United States is in charge of the country—he is the leader, supported by the rest of the people in the U.S.

Many Christians will use the cliché “God is in control” and I often wonder—what in the world does that mean?

I have been haunted for the last two days over a little four-year-old girl in Raleigh who was brutally killed by her own father by way of decapitation in their home, while her mother was at work. The father fled the state and left the mother to come home and find the unimaginable remains of her baby. I have cried twice in the last two days, because I coudn't stop myself from picturing the horror of that little girl's last few moments of life with her dad.

When God first created human beings, the first thing he did was give them the authority to kabash the world.

“God created human beings in his own image. God gave them authority and said, “Make more people; fill the world and kabash (kaw-bash) it. Rule over all the living things in the world” (Genesis 1:27-28, my translation).

Kabash is a very interesting word. We often read it translated as “subdue.” "Subdue" in our day can mean a lot of things. I would venture that most people think it means “cover.” But the real meaning of the word will probably surprise most of Christendom. Kabash is a word of great depth; it means to conquer, bring into bondage, bring into subjection, CONTROL.

God put human beings in control.

Good or bad, pretty or ugly, we are in control.

Nice or hateful, life-giving or murderous, we are in control.

Happy or sad, grateful or greedy, we are in control.

Saying to ourselves or to others, every time something goes horribly wrong, “God is in control,” may sound nice, but it’s not true. We are in control. God put us in control and we don’t have the privilege of taking the path of least resistance and giving control to God.

God said a long time ago, "Let go and let man."

Today, I stopped giving my responsibility to kabash the world back to God. It may not be easy, fun, comfortable, convenient, or simple, but it’s still our responsibility.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Who Is Your Jesus?

Whether we want to accept it or not, Jesus did not go around the country finding non-Jews and creating the Christian Church. Neither did Jesus go around converting Jews to Christianity. Jesus was a Jew in a Jewish world with a message for Israel. The non-Jews are privileged to be welcomed into the family of Israel. It’s not the other way around.

“As far as the gospel is concerned, they [the Jews] are enemies on your account but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable” (Romans 11:28-29).

The history of the Church is often written with the pre-70 A.D. Jewish world left out. This is unfortunate, because the ability to thoroughly understand Jesus and the early Church requires a person to have some understanding of the world in which Jesus lived and taught. Ignorance about the world of Jesus is also partly responsible for such atrocities as the Crusades of the early Church, the Holocaust, and the ongoing terrorism from one religious group upon another. Even the lone-ranger evangelists that in good conscience condemn others to hell with printed posters and harsh words do so out of ignorance of the true message of the true Jesus.

Christ’s movement was a very Jewish movement within a Jewish world and founded on a Jewish framework that was almost completely lost when the Church became dominated by the non-Jewish world.

Bringing a clear focus to Jesus and his Jewish world is difficult today because over the centuries the world has worked diligently to define who Jesus is outside of his Jewish culture. Almost every era has its own version of Jesus. As Dr. Ron Moseley points out in his book, Yeshua: A Guide to the Real Jesus and the Original Church, the influence of Gnosticism is probably the first to begin distorting the image of Jesus with its teachings of dualism (the idea that the soul is good and the body is sinful, and one day the soul will be freed from its sinful cage). With this thought in mind, Jesus began to take on the persona of being a mystic teacher who could show us the way for the soul to be released. This philosophy still invades the Theology of the Church today and has given life to songs such as “I’ll Fly Away.”

From the fourth to the 7th century, indicative of the Byzantine period, Jesus was presented as a powerful emperor who resembled Constantine rather than a humble rabbi.

And reflective of the medieval attitude in the Middle Ages, Jesus was portrayed as the lowly, defeated victim who is hanging on a cross.

Today, especially in the Western world, many people view Jesus as a fair skinned, blue-eyed, long-haired, middle-aged Caucasian rather than a Jewish man with a dark complexion.

Our picture of Jesus has an affect on our perspective of his words, which also has an affect on our interpretation of Jesus’ message as we share it with the world. If I picture Jesus as a lowly, defeated, suffering bearer of a cross, then I will tend to see the rest of humanity as guilty sinners who are unworthy of the Savior whom they killed by their sins. If I picture Jesus as a powerful conquering emperor, then I will view humanity as servants of a respectable king who empowers his people for an abundant life.

Our picture of Jesus, when removed from the reality of his Jewish rabbinic world can inspire an entirely different message from that of the historical Jesus, and make the message of Jesus as subjective as our individual pictures.

Jesus, the Pharisee

In Dr. Ron Moseley’s book, Yeshua, Moseley cites an essay written by Morton Smith, where Smith writes that the ancient world did not have a general term for “religion.” In the Hellenized world, the only word used for “religion” was “philosophy,” which included the religion of the Pharisees. In addition, Smith notes that the ancient Jews used the Hellenistic term “philosophy” to describe what they believed and how they expressed their beliefs.

There are some remarkable similarities between the Pharisees and Greek philosophers.

Pharisaic teachers and Greek Philosophers:
1. were not paid to teach;
2. had disciples who followed and served them;
3. had occupations and were financially supported by those who appreciated their teaching;
4. were exempt from taxes;
5. were recognized in public by the way they walked, talked, and dressed;
6. practiced some level of asceticism.

The philosophy of the Pharisees included believing in the entirety of the Scriptures and the Oral Law (spoken commentary), resurrection of the dead, angels, and eternal judgment.

If it were not for the Pharisaic philosophy, we would not believe in life after death, the resurrection of the body, preaching on the Sabbath, the existence of angels, or the importance of commentaries.

It is widely believed by many scholars of first century Judaism that Jesus was very much in line with the Pharisaic philosophy and that his criticisms of the Pharisees were not criticisms of all Pharisees, but were part of an ongoing debate between those who followed the great teachers, Hillel and Shammai. Jesus was most closely aligned with the teachings of Hillel who was thirty years older than Jesus and was known for his great wisdom and teaching. One of Hillel’s teachings, which was supported and quoted by Jesus, was “what you would not have done to you, do not to another; that is the whole Law, the rest is commentary.”

Those who supported and followed the yoke of Hillel were often debating with those who followed the yoke of Shammai. Jesus often entered the same debate, supporting the teachings of Hillel who taught that it is okay to heal on the Sabbath and clean the outside of a cup at a later time rather than before drinking from it.

The philosophy of Jesus is his yoke, and Jesus' yoke is the yoke that we follow today. Jesus' yoke and Hillel's yoke were very similar. Therefore, the point of this article is to bring attention to the possibilities that the Pharisees, like other ancient philosophers, were varied in their beliefs and teachings, and that Jesus, like the other Jewish sages of his time, was not necessarily enforcing an entirely new philosophy for living out the Word, but was an advocate of a philosophy which was already being taught and practiced in his time by a portion of the Pharisees, a group with which Jesus was most closely aligned.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Check out this blog.

I want to invite everyone to check out Angela's blog at www.ang4him.blogspot.com.

She's sharing some really great studies on the Hebraic and Jewish roots of Christianity.

Say hello while you're there.

Grace and peace,
Johnny

Signs of A Cult

Has anyone else ever heard of these five signs?

Tantalizing if True
Five signs of a cult
Posted in Desperate Suggestions Thursday, December 7th, 2006 Trackback

1. A strong sense of group identity and community.
2. A belief that the group is somehow separate from the rest of society.
3. A strong sense of group destiny and purpose.
4. An unwavering adherence to the teachings of its founder, which may differ radically from the rest of society.
5. A total commitment to the goals of the movement which overrides personal goals and comfort.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Is the Bride Ready?

Ancient Israel had many customs and practices that would not be allowed in our culture today. One such custom was the engagement process. A young man in his twenties would go with his father to the village where the 14-year-old girl whom he was to marry lived with her parents. While there, he would meet the girl and her father for the first time.

A Jewish matchmaker called a shadkhan would put the young man and young woman together based on yihus (stock, family background, reputation in the community, and personal virtue). Jewish marriages placed an emphasis on love after marriage, as opposed to marrying the one you love.

When the young man arrived at the young woman’s house, the two fathers would settle on a “bride-price." Payment by means of money or material items was a way of honoring the family that would be losing the daughter. When the price was settled, the young man’s father would pass his son a cup of wine. The young man would drink from the cup and pass the cup to the young woman, signifying that he wanted her to be his wife and that he was giving his life to her. If she drank from the cup, she was in effect saying, “I want to marry you. I accept your life, and I will give you mine.”

Then the young man and his father would travel back to their village where the young man would begin building a room onto his parent’s home. Generations of sons would build on to the house, creating what is called an insula, a house with many rooms. The young man would work on his house until his dad, the only person who could give a final approval for the new home, would say, “It is ready. Go and receive your bride.”

While the young man worked on the new house, the bride-to-be would make wedding clothes and learn to take care of a home. She was expected to always be ready for his return at any moment. During this time of preparation, all of the people in the young woman’s village would refer to her as “one who has been bought with a price.”

Eventually, the home would be ready, the young man’s dad would give his approval and send his son to receive his bride. When the bridegroom entered the village of his bride-to-be, he would blow a shofar and all the village would hear the horn and know that the bridegroom had arrived. A wise bride would be ready when her bridegroom arrived.

Those who have been learning, preparing, and have kept themselves ready for the groom will join him when he returns and sends his angels to sound the trumpet.

“Do not let your heart be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:1-3).

In His dust,
Johnny

There Is No Old Testament

It is often believed that when Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17) that he is saying, “I have not come to nullify them, but finish them off and start a new one.” With this thought in mind, most of Christendom believes that Jesus was teaching that he came to obey all the commands, close the old book, and write a new book. As we study the very Hebraic nature of the idiomatic words and phrases “to come,” “to abolish,” and “to fulfill,” we will find the true meaning of Jesus’ words.

According to David Bivin in his book, New Light on the Difficult Words of Jesus, when Jesus says that he did not “come,” the word that he would have used was often idiomatically used to denote his intent or purpose rather than meaning he left one place and came to another. In other words, Jesus is saying, “My purpose is not to…but to…” In the King James Version, the original word for abolish was translated “to destroy the law.” According to Bivin, this is not a correct translation as the probable Hebrew equivalent of the Greek verb, levatel, which literally means “to cancel” was often used among the educated teachers during the time of Jesus, and it meant “to misinterpret a biblical mitzvah or commandment.”

Bivin goes on to teach that the probable Hebrew equivalent of the Greek verb plerosai, which is translated “fulfill,” is lekayem, which was often used as the opposite for levatel and meant “to clearly or properly interpret a commandment.”

All of this leads us to understand that it is very possible that Jesus is saying, “I did not come to misinterpret the law and the prophets, but to clearly interpret them” denoting that God’s people needed His instructions reiterated and clarified.

Knowing that Jesus as a Jewish rabbi greatly valued, respected, and kept the Hebrew Scriptures, we should consider that Jesus would not have given a new Bible to the world; he gave clarity to God’s original instructions, not to replace them, but to be placed with them. As one who agrees with this understanding of Jesus’ words, I would add that it does harm to the Church to consider the “New Testament” a new law, rather than a clarification with two amendments. The two amendments to the instructions of God are the release from making blood sacrifices as Jesus became a permanent sacrifice, and all people are now welcome to become a part of God's chosen people.

Furthermore, the approach of considering the “Old Testament” to be an outdated and finished up book of rules replaced by Jesus’ book of grace would appear to resemble the teachings of Marcion who completely rejected the Old Testament and considered it to be the scriptures of a cruel and completely different God from the God of the New testament. Marcion’s influences from Gnostic beliefs have unwittingly been carried on within Christian theology, philosophy, and practice whether overtly recognized or revealed in more sinister and hidden ways.

It may be that the practice of printing Bibles which are without the Old Testament is justified by a hint of Marcionism and the anti-Jewish culture that has been cultivated by the post-70 A. D. movement of the Church.

I want to do my best to fulfill Jesus' words and never abolish them.

In His dust,
Johnny

The Mark of the Beast

When the book of Revelation was written, emperor worship was in full swing. The emperor at this time was Domitian.

Domitian demanded that he be addressed as “God” even by his wife.

Ephesus was a very important city during Domitian’s reign. It was a city in which many citizens of that era would do their shopping, and without being able to shop in Ephesus, a person and his or her family would be without many of their basic human needs. Before a person could shop, he or she was required to declare that Domitian is God at the public altar.

Once a person declared the deity of Domitian, he or she was required to participate in festivals, give an incense offering, and make sacrifices in honor of the deified emperor.

Other requirements included recognizing that the emperor was the provider of life before drinking from public water fountains.

By practicing all the requirements of paying homage to the emperor, the person was considered to have taken on the “mark” of the emperor. To accept Domitian as God and to follow his requirements was to take on the “mark of Domitian.”

The Jews of Domitian’s time nicknamed Domitian "the beast."

Domitian also had a 35-foot statue that would be presented by his representatives wherever he went. This statue would be rolled out into the street and all the people present would pay homage to it by saying in loud voices, “Our Lord, our God, you alone are worthy of praise and honor and power." The statue depicted a very muscular version of Domitian who was actually very obese.

Those who accepted Domitian as God were allowed to shop freely in the market place as they were considered to have taken the “Mark of the Beast.”

“And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no respite day or night—these who pay homage to the beast and to his image and whoever receives the stamp of his name upon him” (Revelation 14:11).

Forever learning,
Johnny

Reflection of Perfection

This morning, most people went into the bathroom, looked at a person who lives in the mirror, and they dressed that person up until he or she was exactly what he or she wanted that person to look like.

They looked as close as they possibly could at that person in the mirror so that if one nose hair was out of place, he or she could see it and pluck it out. Some of them stood, hunched over the sink in an uncomfortable position, holding their breath at times to keep their hand as straight as possible so that they could put makeup on that person as perfectly as possible or so that they could shave away every single whisker. And when they were done, they looked at that person again; looking over every shade and line to make sure it was exactly what they wanted it to be.

They brushed the hair of the person in the mirror and many took dozens of minutes making sure the hair of that person in the mirror was just right.

Many people dressed up the body of that person in the mirror, making sure his or her clothes were without wrinkles and being sure to have every part of that person’s body decorated in clothing that matches, with jewelry that adds to the splendor of the day’s attire.

And many of those people would not leave the mirror until they were absolutely sure that the person in the mirror would add beauty and value to the world.


There were also many who didn’t take any time at all to dress the person in the mirror. Many of these people never even looked at the person in the mirror. The person in the mirror was there, but the person in charge of dressing the person in the mirror had either no ability, time, or interest in dressing that person.

There are many reasons why some never take time to dress up the person in their mirror. Some don’t like the person in the mirror; some are blind and need someone else to dress the person in the mirror. And then there are those who have found themselves so busy that there is no time to spend on the person in the mirror. Finally there are those who have no mirror and don’t have the opportunity.

The person in the mirror is important to us because it is our own exact representation and some of us value what the person in the mirror represents. Some of us care about the gift that the representation of the person in the mirror gives to the world as a person who is cared for and valued, and cares for and values others.

And once we leave the mirror, we take ourselves out into the world where we live in someone else’s mirror. The world then has the opportunity to make us what it wants us to be and look like.

Who am I allowing to dress me up to spend my life representing? If I wonder into the mirrors of the world, I may end up as someone else’s neglected slob.


I am a child of God who is dressed every new day to represent Him. I am to be a reflection of perfection in the world.

I Am God!

In Luke 19:9-10, Jesus says something that we cannot understand unless we have at least a minimal knowledge of Hebrew and the seven exegetical teaching techniques used by first-century Jewish rabbis.

Not only would Jesus have used a play on words at times, but he would also have used the technique known today as remez. A remez is a clue or a hint at a passage of scripture without actually reciting the passage.

As Westerners, we want people to just come out and say what they mean. We even have a phrase that we use—“Say what you mean and mean what you say.” We also say, “Don’t beat around the bush.” But rabbis would always beat around the bush. And if you don’t have a deep and thorough knowledge of the text (God's Word) you will miss the message entirely.

First, Jesus uses a word play. Jesus says to Zacchaeus, “Today salvation has come to this house…” In Hebrew the word for salvation is yeshu' ah (God’s salvation). Jesus is playing on the words “God’s salvation” when he says in Hebrew, “Today yeshu’ ah [which sounds like Jesus' Hebrew name, Yeshua] is coming to your house.” Then he says, “For the son of man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” “Son of Man” is a Hebrew way of saying, “this man” or “I.”

When all the Jews in the crowd and Zacchaeus heard Jesus say that he has come to seek and save the lost, they heard the remez that Jesus used. And what they heard was the 34th chapter of Ezekiel which records the words of God saying, “Because my shepherds have scattered my sheep and have abused them and put them in harms way, I WILL COME AND BE THE SHEPHERD, AND I WILL SEEK AND SAVE MY LOST SHEEP” (My paraphrase).

What this means is that when they heard Jesus say, “I came to seek and to save what was lost,” they heard Jesus say, “’I am God!’ And I have come just as I promised through my prophet, Ezekiel, to bring my sheep out of the trees and the fields and to rescue them from the wild animals and the dangers of the world.”

Often we hear commentators and others say that Jesus never claimed to be God. That seems to be true until we understand the technique of remez that Jesus used often. Zacchaeus and the others Jews on that day heard Jesus say it loud and clear.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Life in the Kingdom is a feast."Merry Christmas."

And we've all had days when we feel like this.

We've all had days like this.

redrum!

How Do I Live a Godly Life (Inherit Eternal Life)?

"Eternal Life" is one Hebrew idiom that has been severely shredded by the Western theological knife. The very reason a Jew would accept and imitate the yoke or scriptural interpretation of a particular rabbi was because he believed that by doing so he would be able to "inherit eternal life."

Inheriting eternal life is a Hebrew idiom for "living life in the will of God." This meant that those who followed Jesus believed that if they obeyed his teachings and imitated his ways of living out God's will, they would gain the ability to "live their lives in the will of God" (inherit eternal life) because they believed that Jesus’ interpretations of the commands of God in the Torah were the perfect interpretations.

The eschatological reward and punishment system was not as important to Jewish people as it is to us Westerners today. In other words, first century Jews were not as concerned with the "afterlife" nearly as much as they were concerned with the "active" life of being a child of God who lived God's will correctly in the world.

It is not easy for those of us who grew up in the Western world where everything either ends with reward or punishment/ payoff or pay-up to imagine doing something because we should do it and it pleases God. I would even suggest that if it was somehow proven that there was not an afterlife reward for Christians that many who claim to be Christians would choose another religion.

I would challenge all Christians to imaging for just one day doing God's will without even considering a reward in the afterlife. Actually, pretend for one day that you are either going to live according to God's will or not and either way there is no heaven or hell in the end. This is the attitude of the first century Jewish world with regard to obedience to the will and ways of God.

We use the reward and punishment system because it works for most situations to which we are required to get people to do what we want. But what if people did their jobs simply because they were able to do them and the jobs needed to be done? What if there was no pay or loss of pay whether I did my job or not? Would I still do my job or be a life-long couch potato? And how would this impact those in supervisory positions. Would they be more likely to express words of appreciation and encouragement like God or would they use tactics of threats and fear like most religions?

God’s word was always a sweet tasting gift to first century Jews, which allowed them the privilege of obeying God simply because it pleased Him, not because they were mortally afraid of losing their jobs or lives. God’s word was written to encourage His people to follow His will, not to scare them into obedience.

Paul tells us that we are to do everything we do as if we are doing it for God (Col. 3:23). God doesn't say do everything we do as if we will be paid for it. We do God's will for the sole purpose of bringing His Kingdom into the world wherever we are present as His children.

Eternal life is the opportunity to please God by doing His will in the world, not the opportunity to live forever, though that may very well be part of the package. But even if our death brought nothing but the end of life, we should do the will of God and do it gladly.

Grace and peace,
Johnny

Many Are Called, But Few Are Talmidim

Jesus said many are called, but few are chosen. Jesus chose his disciples, unlike the normal process of a rabbi's disciple gathering, which was to have a teenage student apply to follow him, by asking the rabbi "Can I be like you?" Upon the rabbi accepting the disciple, after testing him with many questions concerning the Torah, prophesies, other scrptures, etc., the disciple would live with the rabbi day and night from the time the disciple is 15 years-old until he is 30 years-old. Thirty years old was the time a disciple would become either a Torah-teacher or a Master-teacher. Master-teachers were rabbis who had the authority to make new interpretations. These rabbis were very rare, and they were the only rabbis who had disciples. Torah-teachers could only teach in the synagogues and schools and they could only teach what was considered orthodox teaching. Jesus was thirty when he began his public ministry in accordance with the common custom of his day. He was also a Master-teacher, recognized by every Jew of his day by the fact that he led disciples and made new interpretations of the Torah.

Torah-teachers taught students. Master-teachers led disciples. Disciples were not students. The difference between a student and a disciple or the Hebrew equivalent “talmid,” was that a student wanted to know what the teacher knows. A talmid wanted to be like the teacher. Jesus was a Master-teacher or 'Rabbi with shmikah (translated 'authority' in the English Bible).

When Jesus called his 12, he did not require them to apply to him and ask if they can follow him or “be like him.” Instead, he went to them and said, “Come. Follow me.” Or more literally, “Come. Be like me.”

The rich young ruler could not follow Jesus, because to be in the Kingdom of Heaven (a member of the group of Jesus' followers) meant living exactly how Jesus lived, icludeing Jesus' lack of wealth. The rich young ruler's refusal to enter the Kingdom of Heaven did not mean that the rich young ruler couldn’t go to “heaven” when he died. It meant that he couldn’t be a disciple. The Kingdom of Heaven was the group of disciples who followed Jesus in order to learn how be like Jesus, emotionally, spiritually, economically and every other way. It would be impossible for a rich man to be like Jesus, without being willing to share his riches.

When Jesus says it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into the Kingdom of God (Heaven), he is actually saying that it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a person who's not willing to share his wealth to become a disciple.

Very few people have ever been disciples. Many have been saved, but few have been chosen to be disciples. In fact, if you or I were to say to one of Jesus' disciples, "I'm a disciple of Jesus," even Judas Iscariot woud laugh in our faces. Jesus only chooses as his disciples those who desire more than anything in the world to be like him. Others may be saved, but only those who are willing to mimic him in every way are chosen to be his disciples.

In all truth, I probably don't know a single disciple. Only those believers who live every moment, every occasion, and every situation as an imitator of Jesus who says, "Before I do or say anything, how would Jesus respond, what would Jesus say, what would he do in this situation" are disciples. Everyone else may be saved, but they are not disciples.

Most Christians don't know Jesus well enough to mimic his words, much less his life.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Why Do People Quit Good Jobs?

The statistics listed come directly from the book, First, Break All The Rules: What The World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently.

“Based on in-depth interviews by the Gallup organization of over 80,000 managers in over 400 companies – The Largest Study Of Its Kind Ever Undertaken”

The following questions are those that when answered positively by employees, reflected a higher level of retention in a company or company department.

1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last 7 days, have I received recognition or praise for good work?
5. Does my supervisor or someone at work seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission or purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important?
9. Are my coworkers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work?
11. In the last six months have I talked with someone about my progress?
12. This last year have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?

"Those who answered positively to these questions also worked in business units with higher levels of productivity, profit, retention, and customer satisfaction. It was also discovered that the answers were different within individual business units, which proved that it’s not the company that creates a workplace where good people stay, but it’s the immediate managers that create retention or turn-over."

If you are a leader in you organization or company and you're having a difficult time keeping your staff, put yourself in their place and find out if you worked for yourself, could you answer yes to all of these questions. Despite the thinking of conventional wisdom, it's not pay and perks that keep good people.

If you, as an employee, would jump at the first good opportunity to leave your job for another, even if your pay and perks are good at your current job, I guarantee you have answered "No" to most of these 12 questions.

Forever learning,
Johnny