The following Scripture passages are offered to aid beginning fellowships. The readings and commentary for this week are more in line with what has become usual; for the following will most likely be familiar observations. The concept behind this Sabbath’s selection, the Spirit of God, continues.
Weekly Readings
For the Sabbath of January 06, 2007
The person conducting the Sabbath service should open services with two or three hymns, or psalms, followed by an opening prayer acknowledging that two or three (or more) are gathered together in Christ Jesus’ name, and inviting the Lord to be with them.
This Sabbath’s reading is a continuation from last Sabbath, and as such, we will pick up the last lines of last Sabbath’s reading:
Before being made alive spiritually, the disciple is a son of disobedience; the disciple was numbered among the dead that Jesus said shall bury the dead.
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The person conducting the service should read or assign to be read Matthew chapter 8, verses 18 though 22; followed by Luke chapter 9, verses 57 through 62.
Commentary: Usually misunderstood and considered the most
callous of Jesus’ statements, the words, “Let the dead bury the
dead,” lie at the heart of a disciple’s responsibility toward the
kingdom of this world. And the continuation of Jesus’ sentiment in
Luke’s account should order the priorities of every disciple: after
telling the man, ‘“Leave the dead to bury their own
dead’” (Luke 9:60), Jesus added, ‘“But as for you, go
and proclaim the
The “dead” are those who are not living, a simple understanding that somehow gets overlooked by Christians, who understand the dead as those human beings who have ceased to live through the cellular oxidation of sugars. But for God, death isn’t marked by the cessation of physical breath, which can be returned to a person. Rather, death is the absence of life. Thus, death exists prior to spiritual birth: the living, breathing human being who has not yet been born of Spirit is dead in the same way that red mud from which Elohim [singular in usage] constructed the first Adam was dead prior to Elohim breathing into the nostrils of this human corpse (Gen 2:7).
What is the difference between a wax museum’s exhibit of a historical figure and the mummified corpse of a historical figure? Both are composed of the elements of the earth, and both are without life. Both appear like the historical figure they represent. But the first has never been alive; the latter was once alive. And it is the latter that human beings traditionally identify as a corpse, but no better English word could be used to describe the first Adam the moment prior to when Elohim breathed into his nostrils. Likewise, no better English word can be used to describe the spiritual state of every breathing human being prior to being born of Spirit through receiving life from the divine Breath of God [Pneuma ’Agion].
The pattern or model for being born of Spirit is in the act’s shadow. Jesus did not need to repent from sin; He was without sin. Thus, John was reluctant to baptize Jesus (Matt 3:14), but Jesus insisted, saying, ‘“Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness’” (v. 15). So John baptized Jesus to fulfill all righteousness, not because Jesus needed to repent from sin. And with baptism representing death, as soon as Jesus rose from the water, “the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him” (v. 16)—to fulfill all righteousness, death precedes life.
In last Sabbath’s reading, what seemed like a
riddle of two being one required enough explanation that we did not get to
another apparent riddle, that of death preceding life: the visible things of
this world reveal the invisible things of God (Rom 1:20), and the physical aspects
of creation precede the spiritual aspects (1 Cor 15:46) in the same way that
darkness precedes light, and night precedes day. In modern English jargon,
darkness or lifelessness is the default position for the creation, as evidenced
by how one pinprick of light can be seen in darkness but darkness cannot exist
in light. From darkness comes light … light doesn’t logically
follow darkness as some teachers of
The above is childish reasoning and hardly worthy
of a disciple—it is at best spiritual milk. Nevertheless, most of
Christendom has believed that spiritual life in the form of an immortal soul
comes from physical procreation, and that this immortal soul cannot die even in
the flames of the lake of fire. And because most of Christendom has believed
the rebellious prince of this world rather than God, Christianity has become a
curse, a terror, a hissing, a reproach to all nations as God promised Israel
that the nation would become because the nation did not pay attention to the
words of God (Jer 29:18-19). And the Christian will ask, To
what words has he or she not paid attention? This Christian shall be answered:
To the commandments of God. Jesus said that the person who relaxes one of the
least of these commandments [those found in the Law and the Prophets] and
teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven,
but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of
heaven (Matt 5:19). And most of Christendom relaxes [or outright ignores] the
Sabbath commandment. Most of Christendom rebels against God as ancient
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The reader should now read Numbers chapters 13 & 14.
Commentary:
Disciples, if circumcised of heart, are today
There is, within Christendom, a barely concealed
maxim that spiritual wealth can be gauged by possession of physical assets. The
lie is that the more physically blessed a work is, the
more spiritual the work is. If this were true, then Jesus would not have said,
‘“Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of
Man has nowhere to lay his head’” (Matt 8:20). Therefore, the
person who follows Jesus and proclaims the
We are finally getting to where the questions asked
at the beginning of last Sabbath’s reading can be answered: rebellion
against God is relaxing the least of the commandments, and the Sabbath
commandment is the least of these commandments for the Sabbath commandment
makes holy an aspect of what has been physically created [i.e., time]. A
disciple enters into God’s rest on the Sabbath, not on the following day.
As ancient
Yes, a person can produce any number of justifications for breaking the Sabbath, for doing business on the Sabbath, for compromising the commandment. Yes, these compromises will “seem” necessary. After all, breaking the Sabbath is permitted in ox in the ditch cases. But that is not what will happen: the disciple will, if honest, find him or herself placing that ox in the ditch so that work can be “legitimately” performed on the Sabbath … true ox in the ditch situations look like ox in the ditch situations. They will not happen often, and they will involve far too much work to be repeated often. They will not be occasions of convenience. Thus, the many justifications for breaking the Sabbath can be reduced to indwelling disobedience that the disciple is not able to overcome or is unwilling to resist, with the latter usually seen.
If the dead are to bury the dead, then disciples
who have been made alive through receipt of the Breath of the Father are in the
odd position of placing God ahead of family, ahead of community, ahead of state
and nation, ahead of social causes, ahead of military defense, ahead of
financial considerations, ahead of work, business, recreation, and all of those
things that sons of disobedience regard as important. And if the dead are to
bury the dead, then the cares of the flesh and the concerns of family and
community belong to those who are dead. Disciples are to proclaim the
Those who have not been born of Spirit and who
remain naturally minded will perceive such single-minded dedication to
proclaiming the
The tent of flesh in which the born of Spirit son of God temporarily dwells still has the same physical needs as before. The flesh needs food, raiment, shelter.
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The reader shall now read Matthew chapter 6, verses 16 through 34.
Commentary: When the Father draws a person from the world (John 6:44, 65), the Father accepts responsibility for supplying the person’s physical needs. He knows that the tent of flesh in which His infant son dwells has physical needs; He also knows that much of what person consider as needs are only “wants” that the person can live without if necessary. So His concern is foremost the spiritual maturation of His son that now dwells in the tent of flesh of the old creature. And He will do and will supply whatever is necessary to further this spiritual maturation.
It is those who have not been born of Spirit that fret about what shall they eat or drink or wear (Matt 6:31-32)—and those not born of Spirit become very concerned about the mental health of the disciple who takes no anxious thought about what he or she will eat, drink, or wear tomorrow. Therefore, dwelling in peace with those who have not yet been born of Spirit is, for the disciple, sometimes impossible. At all times, it is difficult, and it requires wisdom and tact.
The Father accepting responsibility for supplying a
disciple’s physical needs doesn’t dismiss the disciple from working
and striving to supply those needs while still proclaiming the
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The reader should now read 2 Thessalonians chapter 3, verses 6 through 15; followed by 2 Corinthians chapter 11, verses 7 through 15.
Commentary: By his practice of laboring with his hands while
proclaiming the
The Apostle Paul did not refuse support when he was
in need, but credits the brothers who came from
Why would a person or a ministry ask those who
struggle to feed themselves as they do for support? Why would this person or
ministry not ask God, who placed the person in ministry? And here is the problem: God has not placed most
Christian teachers or ministers or pastors in the social positions they occupy.
They are usurpers. And the Apostle Paul, to undermine their claims that they,
too, have been called by God into ministry, says that they are to work on the
same terms as he works (2 Cor 11:12). If they will not, they are false
apostles, deceitful workmen, ministers of Satan (vv. 13-15); for if they were called to proclaim the
This concept will be continued in next Sabbath’s reading, but the long and short of the matter is that all asking is of God, and that God will use the labor of the one He has drawn from the world and support from other human beings to supply the needs of those whom He has called to proclaim His kingdom—and He has called to this task everyone whom He has drawn from the world. Therefore, brothers will support spiritual brothers as need arises, with each laboring to supply his or her own needs to the best of the person’s ability while not neglecting to proclaim the kingdom of God.
There is no place in the
Those who have been drawn by the Father and called
by Christ to proclaim the
Unfortunately, the ministers of Satan make so much noise and offer so much tinsel that the world has become tone deaf and blind, tuning out anyone or anything that sounds religious as soon as the channel can be changed or the website exited. But this is how it has been from the beginning. And this is how it will be until God intervenes in human affairs as He did in the affairs of Pharaoh long ago: the second Passover will get the world’s attention, and will usher in the seven endtime years. The promise of His intervention came when He gave to Jesus the t+welve original apostles, one of whom was called to betray Jesus (John 17:12). Many today have been called to betray endtime disciples. They are the Judases that bilk millions from the poor to support grandiose ministries and elevated lifestyles.
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The person conducting the Sabbath service should close services with two hymns, or psalms, followed by a prayer asking God’s dismissal.
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"Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved."