Highlighted New Testament Bible

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Sunday, March 20, 2011

St Matthew, Chapter 10, verse: 22a, The Enemy and The Final Outcome.

Our paragraph topic is:  (Opposition foretold) Part 9.  

We have now seen the results of the battles with the evil demons that possess the villages and towns of the house of the lost sheep of Israel.  These are the locations that Christ sent his disciples to preach the kingdom of heaven.  He did not want them to go in the direction of the Gentiles.  He did not want them to go to Samaria.  He wanted them to first go the the lost sheep of the house of Israel to present to them the kingdom of heaven.  These are the people that have strayed.  These are the people that were first chosen by God.  These were the descendants of Abraham.  And Christ wanted to first bring them into the fold.  He wanted to offer first the opportunity for them to turn back to the one true God from which they had been led astray.

Christ trained his disciples so that they would know what to do when they faced the tricks of the enemy.  He fortified them with the weapons of war so that they would not be overcome.  And he instructed them how to bring forth the Spirit of the Father when they faced the kings and governors possessed by the evil one.  He now tells them of the final outcome of the battles they will face.  He shows them the destruction that will be brought about by the evil one who will seek to kill and destroy those who return to the teachings of Christ.  There will be division.  There will be separation.  There will be bloodshed amongst family members, brothers against brother, father against child, children against parents.  The evil one will seek to destroy all who do not follow his way.  He will seek to eliminate all who believe in Christ.

Christ tells his disciples,  "And you will be hated by all for my name's sake."   For he knows the operations of the enemy.  He knows that the enemy will spread hatred like wildfire spreads throughout the dry grasslands.  He will inflict fear in the minds and hearts of those who do not believe.  He will drive the people like cattle to the slaughter the innocent and encourage them to kill, like a crowd mentality without a mind.  The new doctrine of Christ will be rejected by those who do not believe.  It will be cursed by the unbelievers.  It will be blasphemed against.  And the evil one will rejoice in his accomplishments.  And the name of Christ will be hated by all the demons who possess men.  And the men of this world who follow the evil one will come to hate the name of Christ also.  He is the light of the world.  His message is true.  And they will hate him.

Throughout time the battle continues.  For Christ's  name those who believe are hated.  Those who follow the teachings are scorned.  Those who believe in the principles are set aside.  For the world does not believe.  The world believes only in itself and what it can conceive.  This is the world of the evil one.  This is the world that we live in.  And many are blinded.  Many are deceived and do not know.  Many have been brought up to believe that the world is the way.  Many think that they are part of the world and do not know the difference.  For they have not been told.  They have not seen.  Their ears have been shut and their hearts filled with the lust of the world.  For they believe that the world provides for their needs, both physical and spiritual, and they do not know. 

There is no place for spiritual principles in the way of the world.  The evil one has diluted the true message so that now there are several messages, and several platforms that deliver the message.  Each platform claiming the true message, having the right to deliver its own version.  So now as a result no one message comes forth and no one message has the right to come forth over another, for that would be conflict and would infringe upon the rights of other platforms.  So confusion reigns.  And the harvest withers on the vine because the harvesters are in confusion.  And the lost sheep continue to be lost.  Those who are lost use doubt and ambiguity as the source of their disbelief.  The lost sheep turn from the message because they see uncertainty, they see ambiguity, they see confusion, they see many messages and platforms.  And Christ said that the disciples will be hated by all.  All the demons and the people possessed by them, hate those who carry the message of Christ.  Are you hated by the people because of your belief in Christ?  Know that the demons despise you but Christ loves you.